
Class "KCZI 
Boo k , A 9 
Gopyriglit'N? 






COPYRIGHT DEPOSIT. 



AYE R'S 

Monitor of Health, 

SELF-CURE;. 

FAYORITE PRESCRIPTIONS 

EMINENT PHYSICIANS, 

FOR 

DISEASES OF THE GREATEST PREVALENCE 
AND FATALITY, 

AND 

All Diseases Resulting from Vices / 

ALSO 

SECRETS EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW, BEST 

RECIPES FOR EVERY CHRONIC 

AILMENT, Etc. 



BY 

I. WINSLOW AYER, A. M. f M. D., 

For twenty-five years Medical Director of Cincinnati's?^ 
author of "Favored Climates of Am? 
Medical Works. 




PUBLISHED BY 

C. MACUMBER & CO. 
CHICAGO, ILL. 

18 87. 






mi 1 1 ii n 1 1 m i m i ! m 1 1 1 ii n ill mi i ii 1 1 1 n 1 1 1 ii ii ii 1 1 mum mi ii mi in in mi iiniiii 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 r 1 1 1 1 1 < 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 < 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 > 1 1 1 

Entered according to Act of Congress in the year 1887, by 

I. WINSLOW AYER and CASSIUS MACUMBER, 

In the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington, D. C, U. S. A. 



PUBLISHERS' MK0OMCEMECT. 

An Unprecedented Offer — A Guar 
antee to Every Purchaser of 
this Volume. 

We herewith present to the public the latest 
work of one of the most eminent and successful 
physicians in this country, a well-known scientist, 
and popular author, being his 

Favorite Prescriptions, 

and those of other eminent practitioners, with a 
complete diagnosis or statement of symptoms and 
character, of the various ailments and conditions 
for which the recipes are designed ; and so great is 
our confidence in their efficacy, that 

WE WARRANT THEM IN EVERY INSTANCE, WHERE THE 
AILMENT IS CURABLE BY HUMAN SKILL. 

Every prescription presented has been proved in 
numerous cases, in hospital and private practice. 

Any purchaser of this book may make a trial 
of the remedies prescribed, and in the event 
of failure to attain great benefit there- 
from, may forward the book to us, and we 
will remit the price paid for it. 

(iii) 



PUBLISHERS' ANNOUNCEMENT. 

If suffering from any ailment of the classes herein 
discussed, you have 

NO OCCASION TO CONSULT A PHYSICIAN. 

All that is needful, is to copy the requisite pre- 
scription, which any good druggist will prepare, for 
a merely nominal sum, and you will know what you are 
taking, and for what purpose — 

A SECRET WHICH IS ONLY YOUR OWN. 

You can obtain as much, or as little medicine as 
you may wish, at any time. 

Ample arrangements have been made to insure a 
wider sale for this book than any medical work 
has ever had before. It will be sold only by agents 
and by us. 

Price One Dollar. Sent post-paid upon receipt 
of the price. 

C. Macumber & Co., Publishers, 
South Bend Health Institute, 

South Bend, Ind. 



Any purchaser of this book may — free of 
charge — consult the author — personally or by 
mail — in regard to selection of recipes ; letters to 
contain two postage stamps. Consultation fee to 
all others, one dollar. 



PREFACE, 



^rQo his work is designed to fill an important niche 
(|fp§ in popular medical literature, which has not 
^jP2 hitherto been filled by any publication. 
J '%Si While it is a reliable recipe-book, it also pre- 

(&p sents a brief treatise upon every disease for 
b which the recipes are given, and it also im- 
parts useful information concerning matters which 
are not generally known, but which it is vitally im- 
portant that all should understand. For lack of 
such knowledge very many persons, of both sexes, 
suffer untold misery for a life-time, and fall victims 
to an early and painful death. To readers of good 
judgment, no apology need be offered for the intro- 
duction of such information in a hand-book in- 
tended for the million, and none will be offered to 
those whose false delicacy and sham modesty may 
lead to disapproval. 

There is no physician of experience, who has not, 
again and again, been called upon for advice and 
aid in cases that w^ere hopeless, and which might 
have been prevented, by timely information, or 
cured by medical skill, at an earlier period. " Had 
I but known ! " has been and is the wail of the many 
who are lost to happiness, to usefulness, and to 
hope of restoration. Apology for presenting in- 
formation that may save others from a similar 
fate, were weakness and moral cowardice. In the 
confident hope of rescuing many persons from im- 
pending death, and alleviating human suffering, 
this work has been written, with the experience of 
more than thirty years, in a most extensive city 
practice, and it will be sent broadcast all over the 
Union, that all invalids may know the truths of 
such vital importance to them, and which they are 
not liable to glean from other sources. 

(v) 



vi PREFACE. 

Medicax impostors have flooded our cities with 
their demoralizing productions, with the purpose 
of alluring the afflicted to their dens, to rob them, 
and by implied or expressed threats of exposure to 
compel tribute for the future. The aim of this 
publication is to elevate, not to debase and degrade 
humanity, — to save, not destroy those who have 
urgent need of enlightenment upon those condi- 
tions which vitally concern their well-being. 

Not only for those who are victims of indiscre- 
tions, is this book intended, though their number is 
surprisingly great, but our purpose is to confer a 
priceless boon upon the many who are suffering 
from ailments peculiar to sex, which they know 
not how to prevent, and from which they have 
vainly sought relief. Such invalids generally 
shrink from consulting the family physician, and 
after exhausting the entire catalogue of pat- 
ent nostrums, none of wmich ever cure, but most of 
which intensify existing conditions, they endure 
their terrible ills with fortitude and in silence, till 
death ends them. For such women, a portion of 
this work has been carefully written, and is confi- 
dently commended as worthy of all reliance. In 
this book the sufferer will find all the advice she 
needs, and can effect a cure by her own unaided ef- 
forts, and due attention to the instructions given. 

And invalids from any and all diseases discussed 
in the following pages, will find plainly recorded, 
prescriptions of the best remedies known to the 
profession, which they can successfully employ 
without impoverishing themselves and their fami- 
lies by paying doctor's bills for services, that by 
any intelligent reader of this volume will be seldom 
needed. 

Technical language has been carefully avoided, 
our aim having been to write so plainly that all 
may fully understand. The Author. 



CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER I. 
DISEASES OF THE NERVOUS SYSTEM. 

Chorea, or St Vitus Dance Epilepsy Hys- 
teria Paralysis Neuralgia Best Pre- 
scriptions. 
Pages : .11-27 

CHAPTER II. 

D/SEASES OF THE BREATHING ORGANS. 

Structure and functions Nasal Catarrh — Symp- 
toms, Causes, Effects, and Cure Throat Dis- 
eases .... Pharyngitis Tonsilitis, or Quinsy. 

Laryngitis Hoarseness, and Loss of Voice 

Bronchitis Phthisis, or Tubercular Consump- 
tion Persons especially liable to Symptoms 

of the First Stage of Symptoms of the Second 

Stage of Causes of Consumption Common 

Errors in Examination Curative Treatment of 

Consumption Medicated Inhalations 

Asthma Symptoms Cure Best Pre- 
scriptions. 
Pages 28-83 

CHAPTER III. 

HEART DISEASES. 

Structure and Functions of the Heart The 

Pulse, and How to Interpret its Action Causes 

(vii) 



viii CONTENTS. 

of Fainting Irregularity of the Circulation 

Curability of certain Diseases of the Heart. 

Common forms of Symptoms Causes. . . . 

Influence of certain Habits in Relation to. 
Practical Suggestions concerning Best Pre- 
scriptions for Diseases of the Heart. 
Pages 84-95 . 

CHAPTER IV. 
THE LIVER. 

Liver Complaints in Relation to the General 

System The Various Diseases of the Liver 

Symptoms. .... Causes Biliousness Best 

Prescriptions. 
Pages. . . 96-104 

CHAPTER V. 

DISEASES OF THE DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. 

Dyspepsia and its Train of Symptoms Its 

Terrible Effects upon Body and Mind Causes 

of the Ailment Why Dyspepsia is Seldom 

Cured Anaemia Chlorosis — "Consumption 

of the Blood.". . . .Causes and Symptoms Com- 
plications of the Disease Suitable and Unsuit- 
able Diet Digestibility of certain Foods 

Foods for Different Persons Practical 

Suggestions Best Prescriptions. 

Pages 105-115 

CHAPTER VI. 
RHEUMATISM. 

Acute Stage /ironic Rheumatism Causes 

of the Disease . Best Prescriptions. 

Pages..... .> , 115 123 



CONTENTS. ix 

CHAPTER VII. 
DISEASES OF THE GENITO-URINARY SYSTEM. 

Diseases of the Kidneys Prevalence and Dan- 
gerous Character of General Symptoms 

Bright's Disease Diabetes., . . .Inflammation of 

the Kidneys Lumbago, or Pain in the Back. . . . 

Suppression of Urine. . . . Incontinence, or Invol- 
untary Passage of Urine Changes in the 

Urine — What they Signify. . . Inflammation of 
the Bladder A Cause of Paralysis Neural- 
gia Inflammation of the Prostate Gland 

Strangury, or Constant Disposition to Void Urine. 
.... Gravel, Varieties and Effects Best Prescrip- 
tions Solitary Vice Impotence Emis- 
sions Syphilis, or Pox in its Various Stages 

Its Terrible Effects Danger from Neglect, or Bad 

Treatment How it may be innocently Con- 
tracted Hints to Married and Unmarried 

Men Certain and Speedy Cure Gonor- 
rhea, or Clap Complications Best Prescrip- 
tions. 
Pages 124-155 

CHAPTER VIII. 
SECRETS EVERY WOMAN SHOULD KNOW. 

The Great Epochs of Life Causes of the Va- 
rious Diseases. .... Prevention. . . . Recipes for 

every Ailment peculiar to the Sex. 
Pages 156-173 



x CONTENTS. 

CHAPTER IX. 
MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES FOR MANY ILLS. 

Intermittent Fever, or " Fever, and Ague." 

Diseases of the Eye and Ear All Diarrhoeal 

Complaints Cancer General Debility 

Hemorrhage, or Bleeding Night Sweats. 

. . . .Remedies for External Applications — Salves, 
Ointments, Liniments, Lotions, Hair Washes, 

Counter-irritants Best Remedy for Bronchocele, 

"Big Neck," Constipation, Piles, Etc Skin 

Diseases Coughs, Colds, Whooping Cough. 

. . . .Burns Wounds Drunkenness To- 
bacco and Opium Habits. . . .Dropsy Tape- 
worm Scrofula, Etc., Etc. 

Pages 174-206 

CHAPTER X. 

A CHAPTER FOR MOTHERS. 

Childhood's Second Summer Infant Mortality. 

.... Full instructions concerning treatment of In- 
fants — Nursing. . . . Weaning .... Suitable Foods 
— Clothing, etc. . . Important Suggestions. 
Pages 207-235 

CHAPTER XI. 

CLIMATES OF AMERICA. 

Their Influence upon Health Sketches of Fa- 
vored Regions Practical Suggestions to In- 
valids, . . . .Mineral Springs Sea Bathing, etc. 

Pages 236-255 

SPECIAL ANNOUNCEMENTS 256-260 




DISEASES of the NERVOUS SYSTEM. 

1 ',he beautiful and complicated system of telegraph, 
the trunks and numerous branches that connect 
with the great battery — the brain; the influence 
of one set of nerves upon others, the singular 
functions of each and all, and their connections, are in- 
deed wonderful. Upon the harmony and perfect work- 
ing of this mechanism, healthful life depends. 

There are persons of greater nervous sensibility than 
others, by whom trifles are greatly magnified, who are 
seriously affected or agitated by the commonest affairs of 
life, who are more susceptible to painful impressions than 
others. This exalted or irritable nervous condition is 
sometimes due to temperament, but quite as often to ill- 
ness. Such persons — the majority of whom are women 
— require especial sympathy from friends and attendants. 
It is difficult for a robust man who has never experienced 
protracted illness, to comprehend such morbid condition. 
The position of any animal in the scale of being de- 
pends upon the degree of development of its nervous 
system. Through this it is brought into relation with 

[11] 



12 A YE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

the external world. The nervous system is composed of 
the brain and spinal cord and the nerves which extend 
throughout the body. It consists of two parts — one the 
voluntary, thinking, reasoning part, the other the invol- 
untary part, which governs all those organs over which 
the will has no control. 



Best Prescriptions for Nervous 
Disorders. 

Nervines Suitable in Almost all Cases. 

9 M 

Extract Valerian, twelve grains; extract Hyoscya- 

mus, twelve grains; oxide zinc, twenty-four grains. 
Mix. Make 12 pills. Take one pill twice daily. 



Fluid extract Valerian; Hoffman's Anodyne; of each, 
two ounces. Mix. Dose, one teaspoonful in four or five 
teaspoonfuls of water, three times daily. 



B [3] 

Peruvian bark (Cinchona) is a good nervine and 
tonic. In suitable cases may be given according to the 
following formula: Fluid extract Cinchona; Fluid ex- 
tract Valerian; of each, one ounce; essence of Cardamom, 
two drachms. Mix. Dose, a teaspoonful three times a 
day. 



9 M 

Fluid extract Cinchona, three ounces; Fluid ext. 

Valerian, three ounces; of essence Cardamom, half 

ounce; syrup Auranti Cort, two ounces; Fluid ext. Let- 



NERVOUS SYSTEM. 13 

tuce, one ounce ; Tinct. Black Cohosh, one ounce. 
Mix. Dose, a teaspoonful two or three times a day. 



The following is especially valuable in cases of wake- 
fulness: — 

3 [5] 

Comp. spirits ether ; Fluid ext. Valerian ; Aqua Pep- 
perita; of each, one ounce. Mix. Dose, a teaspoonful in 
water three times daily — the last dose on retiring. Must 
not be taken without water. 



Chorea, or St. Vitus' Dance. 

This disorder is characterized by involuntary muscular 
contractions or contortions, without loss of consciousness, 
and without entire loss of power of the will. The dis- 
ease generally comes on gradually, and is often preceded 
by symptoms of derangement of the stomach and alimen- 
tary canal, depression of spirits, and other signs of nervous 
disorder. The first movements of the muscles are usually 
of the face, shoulders and hands, the patient making lu- 
dicrous gestures and grimaces. The irregular motions 
increase, and at length the whole body becomes more or 
less involved in the disease. The head, trunk and ex- 
tremities are in almost constant motion. The patient 
cannot use the hand in writing or sewing, and sometimes 
cannot even convey food to the mouth. In very bad 
cases, the sufferer loses the power of standing or of sitting, 
and is compelled to lie in bed. It seldom happens that 
the muscles are entirely at rest except during sleep, and 
in some cases, the movements are so incessant as to inter* 
fere with sleep. 



14 A TUB'S MOXITOR OF HEALTH. 

Occasionally the disease is subject to remissions, and 
assumes an intermittent character. The paroxysms are 
often greatly increased by motion. The patient is made 
worse when conscious that persons are watching him. 
The disease is sometimes attended with headache. The 
appetite is often capricious and generally craving. By 
proper treatment the disease is always speedily cured. 



PRESCRIPTIONS FOR CHOREA. 

Tinct. Aconite Ead, one drachm; Tinct. Black Cohosh, 
four ounces. Mix. Dose, fifteen drops three times a day. 



OR 

9 [19] 

Fluid ext. Cannabis Indica is often used as a substi- 
tute for opiates. Its use is not followed by headache. 
It is especially valuable in neuralgia, gout, rheumatism, 
mental depression, palsy, epilepsy and hysteria. In mor- 
bid states of the system it causes sleep, allays spasms, 
composes nervous inquietude and relieves pain. It dif- 
fers from opium in not diminishing the appetite, check- 
ing the secretions, nor causing constipation. Dose, five 
to ten drops two or three times a day. 



Calmative and Anti-Spasmodic. 

3 [20] 

Potass. Bromide, half ounce; Fluid ext. Gelsemin, 
one drachm; syrup Auranti Cort, one ounce; distilled 
water, seven ounces. Mix. Dose, one teaspoonful at 
night or noon or both. 



NERVOUS SYSTEM. 15 

OR 

3 [21] 

Comp. spirits ether, two ounces; fluid ext. Cin- 
chona half ounce; fluid ext. Valerian, half ounce; 
essence Cardamom, one drachm; Tinct. Hyoscyamus, 
quarter drachm; aromatic Spirits Ammonia, quarter 
drachm; syrup Auranti Cort, two drachms; Pep- 
perita menth. aqua, one ounce; Tinct. Black Cohosh, 
four ounces; Tinct. Poke Had., half ounce; Vini Col- 
chici, one ounce; Tinct. Columbo, two ounces; Aqua 
dest., four ounces ; white sugar, half pound. Mix. Dose, 
a teaspoonful three times a day. 



For St. Vitus' Dance and Epilepsy. 

3 [29] 

FlnM ext. Cinchona; Fluid ext. Valerian, of each, 
three ounces; Fluid ext. Lettuce, Fluid ext. Scullcap, 
Tinct. Cannabis Indica, Fluid ext. Humulus, of each, one 
ounces Tinct. Black Cohosh, two ounces; Tinct. Hyos- 
cyamus. two drachms; Tinct. Cypripedium, one and half 
ounces, essence Cardamom, half ounce; syrup Auranti 
Cort, two ounces. Mix. Dose, a teaspoonful two or 
three times a day. 



For St. Vitus' Dance. 

9 [40] 

Potassii Iodidi, seven grains ; Fid. extract Cimicifugae, 
twenty drops; Comp. syrup Sarsaparilla and Aqua, of 
each one drachm. Mix. Take this three times a day. 



9 [41] 

The Fluid extract Cypripedium (Lady's Slipper) is ex- 
ceedingly useful in St. Vitus' Dance, Hysteria, nervous 
headache, cramps, and convulsions. Dose, thirty to 
sixty drops, two or three times a day. 



16 A TUB'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

[The most common causes of headache are decayed 
teeth, and inequalities of vision.] 



Epilepsy— Epileptic Fits. 

Any disease of the spine, effusion, tumor, etc., may in- 
duce convulsions or epilepsy. Fright, or other sudden 
mental emotion, has caused a convulsion, and the convul- 
sion has been repeated, affording the most deplorable 
case of epilepsy. Disease within the cranium, by irritat- 
ing other portions of the nervous system, may induce 
epilepsy, frequently of incurable character. The disease 
when having its origin in the nerves of the true spinal 
system, is curable in almost all cases. 

By rational treatment continued for a reasonable time, 
and avoiding exciting causes, the liability to recurrence 
becomes less, the attacks are less frequent and severe, and 
at length cease altogether. To the true spinal system 
refer the symptoms and treatment. 

Among the frequent causes of this alarming disease, is 
the presence of indigestible food in the stomach, loss of 
rest, violent passion, exhaustion and want of food. In 
this ailment the mental powers suffer, and a condition of 
imbecility sooner or later ensues. Patients who have 
been afflicted for many years, have finally and fully re- 
covered under the following treatment. 



CURE FOR EPILEPTIC FITS. 

The best known remedy: — 

3 [27] 

Sodii Bromidi, Potassii Bromidi, Ammonii Bromidi, of 



NEIiVOTTS SYSTEM. 17 

each three drachms; Potassii Iodidi, Ammonii Iodidi, 
of each, one and a half drachms; Ammonii Sesqui- 
carb, one drachm; Tinct. Columbae, one and one half 
ounces; Aqua dest., sufficient quantity to make eight 
ounces. Mix. Dose, one and half teaspoonfuls before 
each meal, and three teaspoonfuls at bed time. 



Another good Prescription for the 
Same. 

3 [28] 

Potass. Brom., four ounces; Ammon'd Citrate Ferri, 
ten grains; Aqua dest., thirty -two ounces. Mix. One 
teaspoonful three times a day. 



Epilepsy. 

$ [30] 

Sodae Brom., one ounce; Ammon. Brom., one ounce; 
Tinct. Strammonium, half drachm. Mix. A teaspoon- 
ful three times a day. Eat no supper. 



3 [31] 

Bromide of Soda may be substituted for common salt 
for table use, in cases of headache, or even in epilepsy, 
and ©ther diseases requiring the constant use of the 
bromides. 



B [32] 

The Valerian extract is useful in epilepsy, hysteria, 
hypochondria, and low forms of fever attended with 
restlessness and morbid vigilance. Take from three to 
six three-grain pills on retiring. 

2 



IS AYE&S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Hysteria. 

This disease generally occurs in cases of Dyspepsia or 
of Chlorosis, but is occasionally induced by powerful 
mental emotions, as excessive grief or joy, and a less cura- 
ble form of the affection has been caused by fright. 
Hysteria is peculiar to women, and is often marked by 
sighing, sobbing, tears, or laughter, with a sense of suffo- 
cation, and with some urgent affection of the head, 
heart, lungs, stomach or muscular system. A fit of 
laughter, or of crying, sometimes becomes convulsive and 
uncontrollable, with a peculiar spasmodic choking. The 
countenance is alternately flushed and pale ; sometimes 
there is hoarseness or entire loss of voice; acute pain in 
the chest, or a feeling as of a ball ascending into the 
throat. In the inveterate form, there is an almost per- 
petual agitation of some part of the body, or limbs. 

The varieties of Hysteria are as numerous as those of 
Dyspepsia or Chlorosis. The disorder affects all the 
systems which constitute the human frame, — the organs, 
the muscles, — voluntary, involuntary, and mixed; the 
faculties of the mind, and the emotions ; the functions of 
head, heart, stomach, kidneys and other organs. It is 
the imitator of many real diseases. 

The causes of the affliction are frequently a disordered 
state of the general health, some functional disturbance, 
or powerful mental emotion. No chronic disease occurs 
more frequently than this. An ancient writer says "it 
is the origin of six hundred ills and innumerable calami- 
ties." The difficulty is one of nervous character, and is 



NERVOUS SYSTEM. 19 

no less important to the sufferer or her friends than the 
diseases which it simulates. 



FOR HYSTERICAL CASES. 

» [6] 

Tinct. Hyoscyamus, half drachm; aromatic Spirits 
Ammonia, half drachm; syrup Auranti Cort, half drachm; 
aqua Pep. menth, ten drachms. Mix. Dose, a tea- 
spoonful three times a day. 



OR 

» m 

Cryst. Bromide Potass., one ounce; aqua dest., three 
ounces ; essence wintergreen, one drachm. Mix. A tea- 
spoonful three times a day. 



Paralysis. 

This affection of the nervous system is a loss, partial or 
complete, of sensation and power of motion. The disease 
may appear suddenly, or its invasion may be gradual. 
In the latter case, it is generally preceded by deranged 
sensation of the part, as pricking, coldness and weak- 
ness, or a feeling as if the parts were asleep, or as if ants 
were crawling over the surface. A large portion of the 
body may be attacked at once, or the affection may be- 
gin in one spot, and thence extend more or less over the 
body. This form of the disease is generally known as 
"creeping palsy. " 

Not un frequently Paralysis is attended with rigidity 
of the muscles, amounting, in some cases, to convulsions. 



20 A YEA'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Pain in the palsied part is not uncommon. It may be 
slight, dull or acute. The limb generally wastes; the 
muscles become flaccid, and the skin over the part pale and 
cold, the capillary circulation being imperfect. The mem- 
ory and mental powers fail, and the disposition is often 
wholly changed. When the affection is confined to one 
side, it is called "Hemiplegia " ; when it affects the lower 
extremities only, it is called "Paraplegia." The disease 
may be caused by whatever interferes with the nerves, 
and by whatever depresses the vital powers by direct or 
indirect agency, or through previous excesses or excite- 
ment. It is more prevalent at the present day than for- 
merly, owing to excessive mental labor, and the faulty so- 
cial and business habits of the people. 



FOR PARALYSIS. 

$ [37] 

Celerina in teaspoonful doses, at intervals of four 
hours, is an excellent remedy. 



B [38] 

Fluid extract Black Cohosh is a tonic to the nervous 
system, and is especially valuable in neuralgia, rheuma- 
tism, consumption, and Intermittent fevers, and in de- 
rangements of the uterine system. Dose, ten to forty 
drops, according to the nature of the disease. 



Neuralgia. 

The word "Neuralgia" signifies nerve ache. It is 
characterized by a severe, sharp pain, more or less dart- 
ing, lancinating, or pulsating. Neuralgia is a term of 



NERVOUS SYSTEM. 21 

modern date, and embraces a group of local affections 
marked by pain, which may occur without inflammation, or 
any appreciable changes in the part affected. The term is 
often improperly applied to any pain, the origin of which 
cannot be readily ascertained. It is sometimes preceded 
by distress in the stomach, nausea, and chilliness, but it 
generally appears without any premonitory symptoms, ei- 
ther beginning gradually, with a sense of aching in the 
part, and increasing until the pain becomes almost insup- 
portable, or darting at once through the part with great- 
est intensity, as if it were electric flashes. It may con- 
sist of a continuous pain, varying in degree, or a succes- 
sion of violent twinges, with comparative ease during the 
intervals. It may be confined to the course of a single 
nerve and its branches, or it may be diffused, sometimes 
darting from one point to another. 

In some instances, there is tenderness of the part, 
which is very sensitive, and the patient cannot bear the 
slightest touch, but more frequently, strong pressure 
upon the part affords relief. With the pain there is often 
spasmodic twitches of the adjacent muscles. 

The disease when affecting the eye, is accompanied 
with increased flow of tears. There is generally more or 
less redness of the part in which the disease is located. 
The paroxysms are generally brief, disappearing after a 
few minutes or hours, and may not return for days; but 
in some cases, it is more lasting, continuing for days or 
weeks; but usually there is more or less remission. It 
not unfrequently happens that neuralgic attacks are inter- 
mittent, occurring at certain parts of the day, with com- 



22 AYEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

parative ease at other times. The pain may abate gradu- 
ally, leaving a sensation of tingling in the parts for a 
short time, or it may leave suddenly. 

Neuralgia may be followed by Paralysis of the part af- 
fected. It is always a symptom of some other ailment, 
and may proceed from a multiplicity of causes, as Nasal 
Catarrh, Dyspepsia, Mental exhaustion, etc. The dura- 
tion of the disease is uncertain, depending upon its 
cause, and may continue for a life-time. While of itself 
it rarely proves fatal, except as it affects the heart, it un- 
dermines the health and is liable to induce ailments that 
may prove fatal. Neuralgia may occur in any part of the 
body, but is more liable to attack the face, head, stom- 
ach, kidneys, or pleura, the jaws, ears, or the sciatic 
nerve, always causing excruciating suffering. 



FOR NEURALGIA. 

5 [12] 

Potassii Iodidi, one scruple ; Sodii Bromidi, two scrup- 
les ; aqua, one ounce. Mix. A teaspoonf ul twice daily. 



$ [13] 

Valerianate of Zinc is anti-spasmodic and is excellent 
for neuralgia and other nervous diseases, also for palpita- 
tion of the heart. Dose, one or two one-grain pills three 
times a day. 

For Facial Neuralgia and Hysteria. 



9 [14] 

Croton Chloral Hydrate, one drachm; Glycerine, two 



NERVOUS SYSTEM. 23 

ounces ; water, quantity sufficient to make four ounces. 
Dose, a teaspoonful three times daily. If the symptoms 
are quite urgent, give a teaspoonful every two hours till 
the pain is relieved. It is useful in all painful affections 
of the head. 



3 [15] 

Sal Amoniac, half drachm ; aqua Camphora, one ounce. 
Mix. Dose, one teaspoonful. Repeat every ten minutes 
till relieved. 

OR 

Gross' prescription: — 

n li«] 

Quinine Sulph., ten grains; Strychnia, one tenth grain ; 
ext. Aconite, two grains ; Sulph. Morphia, a quarter grain ; 
arsenious acid, quarter grain. Mix. Make five pills. 
One every four hours till relieved. 



OR 

9 [17] 

Citrate Ferri, one drachm; Strychnia, quarter grain; 
Syrup Auranti Cort., two ounces; aqua dest., one pint. 
Mix. A teaspoonful three times a day. 

The concentrated Compound Valerian is useful for 
neuralgia of the head, stomach, etc., also for wakefulness 
or headache. 



9 [22] 

Brown Sequard's prescription for neuralgia is generally 
useful. 

Ext. Hyoscyami two thirds of a grain ; ext. Conii, two 
grains; ext. Ignat. Am., half grain; ext. Opii, half 
grain; ext. Aconite, a third of a grain; ext. Cannabis 
Indica, quarter of a grain ; ext, Strammoni, a fifth of a 



24 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

grain ; ext. Belladonnse, a sixth of a grain. Mix. [This 
preparation in pills (Mc K & R) is to be obtained in the 
drug stores generally ] 



Neuralgia. 

3 [33] 

The Valerianate of Ammonium in one grain pills is a 
safe and effective remedy for neuralgia. Take from one 
to six pills daily. 



For Sick Headache. 

$ [23] 

The Citrate of Caffeia, in grain doses, every hour, dur- 
ing the paroxysm, is a remedy and preventive of sick 
headache. Two or three doses in a day is usually suffi- 
cient. 



Headache from Intoxication. 

$ [24] 

Solution Acet. Ammonia, half ounce; Tinct. Auranti 
Cort, one drachm; syrup Auranti Cort, one drachm; 
Tinct. Capsicum, twenty drops ; Comp. Infusion orange- 
peel six drachms. Mix. All to be taken at once. 



3 P5] 

Fluid ext. Scullcap is used in Hysteria, Epilepsy, and, 
all nervous affections, sick headache, etc. Dose, from 
twenty to sixty drops. 

For Nervous Headache. 

3 [36] 

Extract Hyoscyamus two and one half grains ; Pulv. 
Camphor, two and one half grains. Mix. Make two 
pills. One to be taken when the pain is severe. 



NERVOUS SYSTEM. 25 

Valuable Nerve Tonic. 

3 [34] 

Strychnia, one grain. Dilute Phosphoric Acicl, half 
ounce ; Peppermint water, one and half pints. Dissolve 
the Strychnia in the acid, then add the peppermint water. 
Dose, half teaspoonful before breakfast and dinner. 
This should not be long continued, and never be taken 
by persons suffering from heart disease. 



9 [35] 

Phosphorus half grain; Ferrum Eedactum fifty grains. 
Mix. Make twenty-five pills. Dose, one pill twice a 
day with food. Do not take more than a hundred of 
these pills consecutively. After an interval of thirty days 
the prescription may be repeated if necessary. The 
above is adapted to the treatment of nervous diseases de- 
pendent on defective nutrition, and debility of the spi- 
nal column. It increases appetite and promotes nutri- 
tion. 



» [36] 

For nervous debility the Valerianate of Quinia is excel- 
lent, taken in half-grain pills, — one pill three times daily. 



Nerve Tonic. 

Especially valuable in tuberculous disease, consump- 
tion, or scrofula, or other impoverished condition of the 
blood, sciatica and neuralgia- 



Nervine to quiet Pain. 

3 [8] 
• Camphora Pulv. ; ext. Hyoscyamus Ale. ; of each, ten 
grains; ext. Valerianae, five grains. Mix. Make 10 
pills. Dose, one pill two or three times a day till re- 
lieved. 



26 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

For Sleeplessness. 

^ [9] 

Lupulin is useful in diseases of general or local de- 
bility associated with morbid vigilance, or other nervous 
derangement ; especially useful in Dyspepsia and in nerv- 
ous tremors, etc. One, two, or three pills of three grains 
each, on retiring. 



OB 

3 [10] 

Tinct. Gelsemin, twenty drops; Tinct. Aconite Had. 
half drachm; Tinct. Hyoscyamus, three drachms; Potass. 
Br omidi, half ounce ; Syrup Doveri (Gregory), quantity 
sufficient to make two ounces. Mix. A teaspoonful in 
water, on retiring. 



OR 

The following formula of Prof. Gross, is excellent: — 

b [ii] 

Potasii Bromidi, half drachm; Chloral, 15 grains; 
Morph. sulph., an eighth of a grain; Syrup Auranti, one 
drachm ; aqua, one drachm. Mix. Take half of above 
on retiring. 

Sleep is improved by placing the head to the north. 



For Melancholia, especially with 
Women. 
3 [39] 

The Valerianate of Zinc, Quinia, and Citrate of Iron, 
of each twenty grains. Mix. Make twenty pills. One 
pill three times a day. 



For Vertigo. 
3 [42] 
For Gastric Vertigo, with disturbed circulation give 






NERVOUS SYSTEM. 



27 



Pepsin at meals, and — Argenti Oxidi half 
Hyoscyami, two grains. Mix. Make a pill, 
may be taken three times daily, if needful. 



grain; ext. 
Such pills 



9 [43] 
The Fluid ext 
excitability, 



Hyoscyamus is used to allay pain, quiet 
and arrest spasms. Dose, three or four 



drops. In over-doses, it is a powerful narcotic poison. 
Fluid extract of Lettuce causes effects similar to, but 
milder than those of opium, but its use is not followed 
by headache, nor constipation. Dose, twenty to sixty 
drops two or three times a day, if required. 



[For prescriptions for suitable liniments, lotions, etc., 
see External Applications.] 




W^% 



II. 

DISEASES of the BREATHING ORGANS. 



•!-K-!~*— 



Structure and Functions of the 
Organs. 



i 



T the top of the windpipe a few cartilages unite 
and form that curious and convenient box, the 
^n Larynx. Across this enclosure are placed two re- 
" (J markable cords, the vocal ligaments, which are 
from a half to three fourths of an inch in length, and are 
rendered more or less tense by the muscles with which 
they are connected. Just above these cords are two 
cavities, which, with the ligaments, serve an important 
part in the formation of the voice. Here is produced the 
sound which is modified by the tongue, lips, and nasal 
cavity. 

As the windpipe descends into the chest, it divides be- 
low the top of the sternum, or breast bone, one branch 
going into the right, and the other into the left lung. 
Th branches sub-divide very minutely and send 
their divisions into every part of the lungs. As 
(28) 



BREATHING ORGANS. 29 

they descend, they diminish in size, till they are from 
3 - to 5 X of an inch in diameter, and extend to within 
an eighth of an inch of the surface of the lungs. Upon 
their sides, the air-cells open, and as the cells — of which 
it is estimated there are 600 millions — are close together, 
the blood-vessels passing between them are brought in 
contact with the air on both sides, and thus is the blood 
rapidly and fully aerated or vitalized. We may compare 
the air-passages to an apple-tree, inverted — the windpipe 
representing the trunk, and the Bronchial tubes and 
their divisions, the branches and twigs, and the air-cells, 
or vescicles, the leaves. Our tree is hollow throughout, 
and its trunk and branches are lined with a delicate and 
sensitive membrane. Diseases of these parts cause red- 
ness, roughness, and unhealthy discharges. 

The lungs are made up of air-tubes, air-cells, and 
blood vessels. All the blood in the body passes through 
the lungs every two minutes of life, for the purpose of aera- 
tion or renewal. The lungs are conical in form and ex- 
tend into the root of the neck, just above the level of the 
first rib. The base is broad, concave, and rests upon the 
diaphragm, — the large muscle shaped like an inverted 
saucer, separating the chest from the abdominal cavity. 
The introduction of air is effected upon the principle of 
the common bellows, by the elevation or depression of the 
diaphragm. In advanced life, the action of the diaphragm 
is insufficient for breathing, and a further volume is ob- 
tained by raising the ribs, in which movement many mus- 
cles are brought into action. The right lung is larger 
than the left. The weight of both lungs is about 42 
ounces 



30 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Each lung is perfectly covered by a delicate membrane, 
the Pleura, which also lines the chest. Inflammation of 
this membrane is the distressing affection, Pleuritis or 
Pleurisy. The object of breathing is the renewal of the 
blood; the removal of impurities therefrom; the supply 
of requisite warmth ; and aid in the process of nutrition. 
The number of respirations per minute differs in different 
individuals, in different conditions of the air, and on 
different levels. The average number in a person of me- 
dium stature, in sound health, on ordinary levels, is 16 or 
18, but in disease it may be 30, or 40, or more. They 
are very rapid in high altitudes, and in a rarified atmos- 
phere. To a certain extent, breathing is subject to the 
will. The proportion of breathing to the pulsations of 
the heart is as 1 to 4, and when this proportion becomes 
materially changed, there is doubtless some obstruction in 
the vitalizing process of the blood, a heart disease or 
some nervous affection. Such disproportion occurs in 
Pneumonia, Asthma, Typhus fever, Poisoning, etc. 

The healthy lungs of an adult of medium stature, in- 
hale at each inspiration a pint of air, and of this, nearly 
one quarter of its vitalizing element — oxygen — is ex- 
changed for carbonic acid. A person unfits for the pur- 
pose of respiration, at least 1,200 gallons of air during 
the period ordinarily devoted to sleeping. Vitiated air 
tends to the development of tuberculous disease, by de- 
pravation of the blood. The air exhaled differs from the 
air inhaled, not only in the altered proportions of oxy- 
gen, nitrogen, and carbonic acid, but in having received 
a large addition in the form of watery vapor, which holds 



BREATHING ORGANS. 31 

in solution carbonic acid and considerable animal mat- 
ter. 

The protecting agency of the system of nerves which 
■control the breathing organs, is shown by the spasmodic 
closing of the upper part of the windpipe in an atmos- 
phere charged with carbonic acid. The introduction of 
an irrespirable gas into the lungs, or the prevention of 
access of air, brings the circulation to a stop. 

The lungs present an extensive absorbing surface, and 
absorption is constantly taking place, causing disease and 
death in some instances, and cure cf disease in others. 
Diseases affecting the air-passages or lungs, due ei- 
ther to inflammation, or to depravation of the blood, are 
far more readily controlled and cured, when the curative 
agents are addressed directly to the absorbing surface, as 
by Medicated Inhalations, than in any other manner. The 
space over which the air-cells extend in the lungs is 
equal to the entire surface of the body. 

Animal heat depends upon the constant union of the 
oxygen received by the lungs with the carbon and hydro- 
gen derived from the food. Man and the mammalia gen- 
erally, have their heat much above that of the atmos- 
phere which surrounds them, the normal temperature of 
the blood being 98°. 

Nothing renders persons more susceptible to taking 
cold, to be attacked with rheumatism, typhoid-pneu- 
monia, diphtheria, and other dangerous diseases, than de- 
praved blood resulting from the inhalation of foul air. 



32 A YE PS S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Nasal Catarrh —Causes, Symptoms, 
Effects, Cure. 

This most prevalent and most loathsome ailment at- 
tacks alike men, women, and children. It consists of in- 
flammation, beginning a little above the veil of the pal- 
ate, and extending throughout the nasal cavities. These 
parts, as also the throat and air-passages of the lungs, 
are lined with a delicate and highly sensitive mucous 
membrane, similar to that of the lips, which is liable to 
irritation from very slight causes, as dust, chemicals, va- 
pors of certain kinds, smoke, and even peculiar condi- 
tions of the atmosphere ; these may cause irritation, which 
may advance to inflammation and ulceration. In nearly 
all cases, the sense of smell is sooner or later impaired, 
and often ultimately destroyed. The disease extends to 
the tubes which run from the throat to the ears, causing 
pain or deafness, and frequently both. To correct the 
difficulty, persons often very unwisely put oils and other 
substances into the ear, which so far from curing, always 
makes the difficulty worse, and is very liable to render 
permanent an evil that might be promptly remedied 
by proper and timely treatment. 

As the disease advances, sounds of various kinds are 
heard, which the patient describes as like the tones of 
bells, the hissing of steam, or the roar of a waterfall, etc. 
A dull, heavy pain is generally felt in the forehead, and 
spots occasionally float before the eyes, and disease of the 
eyes ensues, known as catarrhal ophthalmia. Many ca- 



BREATHING ORGANS. 33 

ses of neuralgia are due to nasal catarrh, and resist all 
medical aid while the cause continues. 

If to this train of symptoms we add the more loath- 
some physical effects : decay of the bones of the face, a 
most intolerable effluvia of the breath, which is contag- 
ious, — a nuisance of which the sufferer is not always 
conscious, — morbid and poisonous secretions, which in 
part pass into the stomach, deranging the Digestive 
System and vitiating the blood, thus becoming a cause of 
Consumption, and destruction of, or serious injury to the 
senses of sight, hearing, smell, and taste, to say nothing 
of the deplorable effect upon the mind — loss of memory, 
confusion of ideas, and despondency of spirits — we have 
a catalogue of horrors that should lead the afflicted to 
make early and proper efforts to eradicate the disease. 
But if there is also dryness, redness, or swelling of the 
throat, morbid sensitiveness, weariness upon reading 
aloud, singing, or conversing, or a slight hacking cough, 
the terrible disease is advancing to the lungs. 

Nasal catarrh may be caused by anything that will ir- 
ritate the membrane, or obstruct the perspiratory process. 
It is especially prevalent in regions where great and sud- 
den atmospheric changes occur, and most frequently at- 
tacks persons employed in grain ware-houses, carriage- 
factories, planing-mills, paint-shops, flour-mills, foundries, 
stone-works, harness and shoe shops, upon railroads, and 
in all other places where the air is especially impure, 
where there are strong currents of air, or where there is 
much dust. It may be caused by insufficient clothing, or 
may be the sequel of violent colds, or of measles, scarla- 
tina, or syphilitic disease. 

3 



34 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

There is no ailment so prevalent, none having a 
greater diversity of symptoms, or respecting which there 
is more ignorance, both upon the part of the people and 
the profession generally, than nasal catarrh. By many 
physicians it has been pronounced incurable, but it may 
be cured in almost every instance, by proper and timely 
treatment. 



FOR NASAL CATARRH. 

9 [44] 

Fluid ext. Yerba Keuma, half ounce; Aqua dest., three 
and a half ounces. Mix. Snuff one teaspoonful through 
each nostril, three times daily, first cleansing the parts 
with luke-warm water. Excellent in Coryza — acute 
colds, with sneezing, also in Ozena — an ulcerated form 
of chronic catarrh. It sometimes cures in a single 
month. 



B [45] 

Fluid ext. Yerba Keuma ; Fluid ext. Clover Blossoms ; 
of each, half ounce; Aqua dest., three ounces. Mix. 
Use as above directed. Also give — 



3 [46] 

Fluid ext. Berberis Aquifolium, one and a half 
ounces; Aqua dest. ; syrup Simplex; of each, two and a 
half ounces. Mix. Dose, one teaspoonful four times 
daily. If the catarrh is attended with cough, and foul dis- 
charges from the throat, use prescription 45, and give — 



B [47] 

Fluid ext. Berberis Aquifolium, two ounces ; syrup Hy- 
pophosphites Co., four ounces. Mix. One teaspoonful 
with water three times daily. This is excellent when the 



BREATHING ORGANS. 35 

patient is reduced in flesh and strength, with nervous 
prostration. 

If there is thickening of the membrane, add to the in- 
sufflation (45), Glycerine, half ounce; and use the prepa- 
ration with a nasal syringe, three times daily; also, in- 
hale, twice daily, by the nostrils, the following : — 

5 [48] 

Tinct. Iodine, one scruple; Chloroform, two ounces. 
Mix. Smell till the effects of the Chloroform are felt, 
then desist. Also give — 



» [49] 

Fluid ext. Terba Santa, one ounce ; Fluid ext. Berberis 
Aquifolium, two ounces; Glycerine, three drachms. 
Mix. One teaspoonful three times daily. It is excel- 
lent where there is Bronchial irritation and cough. 
There is no better constitutional treatment. 



Nitrate of Silver Solutions. 

* [50] 

Nearly all cases of Nasal Catarrh may be cured in from 
one to six months by the use, once daily, — by nasal 
shower syringe — of solutions nitrate of silver from five 
grains to one drachm, to an ounce of distilled water. 
Usually the strength of the solution should be fifteen or 
twenty grains nitrate of silver to an ounce of water ; the 
quantity injected, a teaspoonful. Do not inject the nos- 
trils, but the throat, — posterior nares — as physicians term 
the part. Depress the tongue and introduce the nozzle 
of the syringe back of the uvula, or "palate," hold the 
breath, and inject, but not too forcibly; the liquid will be 
discharged through the nostrils. There will be some 
burning for a short time, but improvement will be appar- 
ent in a single day. Any person can make the opera- 
tion, which may be facilitated by seeing the parts in a 
mirror. The solution will stain temporarily. 



36 AYE IPS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

$ [51] 

In catarrhal inflammations, where the membrane is dry, 
the nitrate Potass, will be found very useful, applied once 
daily with syringe, in solutions of five or ten grains to an 
ounce of water. 



9 [52] 

Other cases may be treated with Dilute Carbolic acid, 
weak dilutions, or by Golden Seal, Tannin, or Hamame- 
lis (witch hazel), Glycerine, etc., used once or twice a day. 



An Agreeable and Most Effective 
Remedy. 

$ [53] 

Listerine, one ounce; Fluid ext. Golden Seal, half 
ounce; Hamamelis, half ounce ; aqua dest., eight ounces. 
Mix. Used twice daily, either by the nostrils or poste- 
rior nares, will cure in a few weeks. The quantity used 
is a teaspoonful, by Ayer's Spray Instrument, which is 
the very best mode of introduction. 

Listerine consists of thyme, eucalyptus, baptisia, gaul- 
theria, mentha arvensis, and benzo-boracic acid. It is an 
excellent antiseptic, perfectly safe and efficacious. It may 
be used internally, as well as for local applications ; taken 
in doses of one teaspoonful three times a day, for feverish 
condition. As a local application to ulcers, wounds, 
and abscesses, or as a gargle, injection, or inhalant, dilu- 
ted if desirable, Listerine is one of the most valuable 
agents known. 



B [54] 

In acute and chronic inflammations of the naso- 
pharynx — the nasal passages — Iodoform is a most valua- 
ble topical remedy. It is applied in two ways : as an 
ethereal solution, — one part to ten or twelve of common 



BREATHING ORGANS. 37 

ether, with a brush, sponge, or cotton, — or it may be 
mixed with vaseline, — five or eight grains to the ounce, 
and applied to the nostrils with a brush, once or twice 
daily. 



For Ozena or Chronic Catarrh. 

3 [55] 

Argenti Nitratis, ten, twenty, or thirty grains; Bis- 
muth i Subnitratis, one ounce; Kalii Sulphatis, one 
drachm. Mix. Use in nostrils with brush once daily. 



For the General Treatment of Ozena — 
Constitutional Remedy. 

B [56] 

Ferri et Quin. Citratis, Vel Ferri et Ammon. Citratis, 
one drachm ; Sol. Fowleri, half drachm ; Tinct. Cubebae, 
three drachms ; Tinct. Gentianae Comp. ; and Tinct. Cardal 
mom Comp. ; of each, two ounces. Mix. A teaspoonfu- 
three times a day after meals. 



An English Remedy for Catarrh, 

V [57] 

A wide-mouth, glass-stopped bottle filled with cotton, 
to be saturated with Acidi Carbolici Puriss, four scru- 
ples ; Liq. Ammon. Caustic sp. gr. 0960, one and a half 
drachms ; Aqua dest. three drachms ; spirits Vini Rect., 
four scruples. Mix. Breathe the vapor for a few min- 
utes three times daily. 



For Catarrh Cold. 

3 [58] 

Carbolic Acid, ten drops ; Tinct. Iodine, eight drops ; 



38 AYEIVS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Chloroform, eight drops. Mix. Heat a few drops over a 
spirit lamp, in a test-tube, holding the mouth of the tube 
to the nostrils as soon as volatilization has begun. Re- 
peat every two minutes till the patient sneezes a number 
of times, when the symptoms of the cold will disappear. 



For Infusorial Catarrh, Diphtheria, 
or Scarlet Fever, 
$ [59] 

Menthol, twenty grains ; Carbolic Acid, one drachm ; 
Fluid ext. Licorice, two ounces; Aqua dest., fourteen 
ounces. Mix. Gargle every hour. May be diluted 
with water. 



Good Ointment for Infusorial Catarrh, 
Hay Fever, and All Cases of 
Catarrh. 
$ [60] 

Menthol, one drachm; Simple Cerate, two ounces; 
01 Sweet Almonds, one and a half ounces ; pure Oxide 
zinc, one drachm; Carbolic acid, half drachm. Mix. 
Apply with brush, or finger, to the nostrils twice daily. 



B [61] 

Take a wide-mouth vial ; put into it a few grains of Io- 
dine and heat the vial; fumes quickly appear. Inhale by 
the nostrils. Repeat every second day, for catarrh. 
This is a prescription sometimes employed, but is not 
commended nor approved by us. 



Acute Coryza. 

I* [62] 

Pulv. Camphor, one drachm ; Chloroform, one drachm ; 



BREATHING ORGANS. 39 

Acidi Benzoici, half drachm; Adipis, one ounce. Mix. 
To be applied to the nose at any time with the finger. 



For Insufflation — Snuffing. 

9 [63] 

Hydrochlorate of Cocaine, four to six grains ; Hydro- 
chlorate Morphine, three grains ; Sub-nitrate Bismuth, and 
white sugar, of each, seventy-five grains. Use once daily. 
Or the following: — 



Vapor of the Solution. 

3 [64] 

Hydrochlorate of Cocaine, eight to sixteen grains; 
Chlorate of Potass., one hundred and fifty grains, Cherry- 
laurel water, five drachms ; Aqua, one pint. Mix. Va- 
por to be breathed once daily. 

[The last two prescriptions above are commended by 
the New York Medical Journal.] 



Remedy for Catarrh. 

3 [65] 

Salicin, one ounce; Hydrastin, half ounce. Mix. 
Divide into 20-grain powders. Take one every two 
hours, for three days, after which, one three times a day. 
Sometimes a local wash is used, but is not regarded es- 
sential. Some very bad cases have been reported cured 
by the above. 



Hay Fever, and Acute Coryza. 

3 [66] 

Cocaine Hydrochlorate may be used. A pledget of 
cotton, soaked in a four per-cent solution, and passed 
into the nostrils for 5 or 10 minutes, will give instanta- 



40 A TEH'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

neous relief to the fullness and pressure about the nose, 
and will give comfort during an attack of Hay fever, or 
"rose cold." It relieves the hyper-sensitiveness of the 
mucous membrane, relieves local distress, removes con- 
gestion, and checks the secretion. It is a palliative. 



Throat Diseases. 

Nasal catarrh is a frequent cause of throat affec 
tions, which in this climate are every year becoming 
more prevalent. Indeed these ailments seem to have 
fastened upon not less than a third of the population of 
our Northern, Eastern, and Central States. If neglected 
or improperly treated, these ailments generally terminate 
in Consumption and death. • They are alike in character 
consisting of inflammation, acute or chronic, of the 
membrane lining the air-passages, and of the glands, and 
each disease takes its name from its location : thus, in- 
flammation of the Pharynx, that part of the throat seen 
when the mouth is open, is Pharyngitis; inflammation 
of the larynx, or voice box, is Laryngitis; of the Bron- 
chial tubes — the air passages of the lungs — Bronchitis. 
The progress of a throat disease is always downward. 
Its invasion and advance is so insidious, as hardly to at- 
tract notice, in some cases, and it frequently makes fear- 
ful inroads before even the patient is aware of its char- 
acter. 

Tonsilitis is an inflammation of the tonsils, which con- 
sist of a collection or mass of small glands at the base 
of the tongue, on either side, their function being to sup- 
ply a portion of the fluid for moistening the throat. 



BREATHING ORGANS. 41 

There are persons who suffer every winter, sometimes 
often er, from an acute attack of inflammation of these 
glands, causing the condition called Quinsy. The ton- 
sils are sometimes affected by chronic inflammation, and 
are found enlarged and greatly hardened. With many 
young persons they are permanently so large as to render 
breathing exceedingly difficult, and to affect the speech. 
The defective breathing often causes contraction of the 
chest, and lays the foundation for Consumption. 

A very common disease of the throat is an inflamma- 
tion of the membrane and glands of the larynx, called 
Laryngitis. When inflammation attacks the larynx, the 
fluid secreted to moisten the vocal cords, becomes acrid, 
the voice becomes hoarse; and when these ligaments be- 
come changed in structure by inflammation and ulcera- 
tion, the sufferer can only speak in a whisper, a condi- 
tion which we term Aphonia. 

As destructive to the tissues as the affection may 
prove, as great as may be the suffering and danger of the 
patient, it promptly yields to remedial measures; but, 
unfortunately, proper treatment is too often neglected, 
and the disease extends to the Bronchial tubes, the large 
air-passages of the lungs. 



Best Remedies, 

Pharyngitis. — Inflammation of the Throat. 

$ [67] 

Two grains chloride of Ammonium, combined with ten 
drops of the Tinct. Cubebs, given every half hour, often 



42 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

controls acute Pharyngitis, and superficial inflammation 
of the other tissues about the throat. For inflammation 
of the throat dependent upon a gouty diathesis, add to 
this mixture ten drops of ammoniated tincture of Guaiac, 
and give every hour. 



$ [68] 

For pain and soreness of the throat, there are few 
remedies more soothing, quieting, and anodyne in their 
influence, than the ethereal Tincture of Iodoform. Apply 
with a pencil brush as often as needed. 



n [69] 

All cases of throat disease, acute or chronic, inflamma- 
tory or ulcerative, may be benefited, and in many cases 
cured, by applications of nitrate of silver solutions, vary- 
ing in strength from five to sixty grains, according to the 
condition. Weak solutions are stimulating, hence more 
generally applicable in chronic cases. Strong solutions 
are sedative, and tend quickly to reduce inflammatory 
conditions. Apply once daily with a camel' s-hair brush. 



For Enlarged Tonsils. 

3 [70] 

This condition is often cured by injecting into the 
substance of the tonsil Ergo tin, one third of a grain; 
aqua pura, fifteen drops. 



For Acute Laryngitis. 

n pi] 

Vini Antimonii, half drachm; Vini Ipecac, ten drops; 
Potassii Acetatis, one scruple; Spirits Aetheris nitrosi, 
one drachm; Potassi nitratis, half scruple. Mix. To be 
given every four hours. 



BREATHING ORGANS. 43 

Inflammation of the Throat in Scarlet 
Fever. 

9 [72] 

Sodae Sulpho Carb. ; Potassae Chlor. ; of each, one 
drachm; aqua pura, two ounces. Mix. One teaspoon- 
f ul every "three hours. Or the following: — 



9 [73] 

Sulpho Carb. Sodae; Potassae Chlor.; of each, two 
drachms; Guaiac Pulv., one drachm; aqua pura, two 
ounces; Glycerine, two ounces. Mix. A teaspoonful 
every three hours. 



Gargles for Inflamed Throat, 

3 [74] 

Raspberry leaves, Geranium and Blackberry root; of 
each, one ounce. Make three pints — strong decoction — 
and gargle frequently. 



For Ulcerated Throat. 

B [75] 

Pulv. Golden seal; Pulv. Cranesbill; Pulv. Witch-ha- 
zel bark; of each, one drachm. Add boiling water, half 
pint. When the liquid is cold, swab an ulcerated throat. 
Excellent in scarlet fever, etc. 



$ [76] 

Tannin, one scruple ; aqua pura, four ounces. A good 
gargle. Use frequently. 



B [77] 

Fluid ext. Capsicum diluted with water, is a good gar- 
gle in Scarlet fever, malignant sore throat, etc. 



44 A YE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Another. 
9 [78] 

Acidi Carbolici, half drachm; Glycerine, two ounces; 
aqua pura, four ounces. Gargle twice daily. 



Another. 

V [79] 

Geranium, Golden seal, Marshmallow, wild Indigo 
root, and Rosemary; of each, half an ounce. Make 
one pint strong infusion, strain, and add Pulv. borax, two 
drachms, and honey, two ounces. 



9 [80] 

Fid, ext. Cranesbill; Fid. ext. Black Cohosh; Fid. ext. 
Golden seal; Fid. ext. Witch-hazel; of each, half ounce; 
water, one quart. Make a gargle. The Cranesbill may 
t>e used alone if preferred. It is nearly tasteless. 



B [81] 

The following is a good gargle, but should not be swal- 
lowed: Chlorate Potass., two drachms; Hydrochloric 
acid, forty drops ; aqua pura, one pint. Mix. 



» [82] 

Ether spray, as an inhalation for sore throat, is ex- 
cellent. Sulph. ether is sprayed against the Pharynx 
for three minutes. Repeat every three hours. Cases 
are thus often cured without other remedies. Used with 
our Spray Instrument. 



B [83] 

Jensen's Crystal Pepsin is very useful in Diphtheria. 
It is inodorous, tasteless, and soluble in water, and forty 
times stronger then saccharated pepsin. In removing 
diphtheritic patches it is combined with water, glycerine, 



BREATHING ORGANS. 45 

and muriatic acid ; and diluted with water is used as a 
spray in bronchial and catarrhal affections. The solu- 
tion used in Diphtheria is : Jensen 's Pepsin, one drachm ; 
Acid Hydrochloric, c. p., twenty drops; aqua, a sufficient 
quantity to make two ounces. Apply freely every hour 
with probang or pencil brush. 



For Aphonia and Chronic Laryngitis. 

B [84] 

Fid. ext. Yerba Santa, two ounces ; Syrup acaciae, one 
ounce. Mix. One teaspoonful five or six times a day, 
and use counter-irritants. 



For Quinsy. 

S [85] 

Tinct. Belladon. ; Tinct. Aconite Rad; of each, two 
drachms; syrup Doveri (Gregory), two ounces; Spirits 
Nitr. Dulc, one and a half ounces. Teaspoonful every 
four hours. 



Diphtheria. 
B [86] 

Make a gargle of four or five grains of Chloride zinc, to 
an ounce of water. Apply with a swab. Also give 
Chlorate Potass, in solution with a few drops Tinct. of 
iron, and sugar to make it palatable. May be relied 
upon. The gargle has no disagreeable taste. Eat or 
drink nothing for an hour after using the gargle or swab. 
Use it every three or four hours. 



Scarlatina. 
B [87] 
Give drop doses Tinct. Aconite every hour. Spray 



46 AYERS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

throat with Acid Carbolici, one drachm ; Potass. Chlorate, 
one drachm ; Fid. ext. Pinus Canadensis, two drachms ; 
Glycerini, half ounce ; aqua f erv. a sufficient quantity to 
make four ounces. Dissolve the Potass, in the hot water 
before adding the other articles. Gargle or use with a 
camel's-hair brush. To prevent the secondary septic in- 
fection, so often the cause of death, where the throat is 
much involved, give throughout the disease — 



$ [88] 

Tinct. ferri chlor., half ounce; Potass, chlorat, one 
drachm ; Glycerine, one ounce ; Elixir Simple, one and a 
half ounces. Mix. A teaspoonful every two or three 
hours. 



Bronchitis. 

This affection may exist either in acute or chronic 
form, and if neglected or improperly treated, will prove 
as surely fatal, as Tubercular Consumption. Chronic 
Bronchitis differs from the acute stage, by its continu- 
ance for a long time without any sudden or remarkable 
changes. Cough is an invariable symptom, and this is 
increased by cold, moist conditions of the atmosphere, 
and by every slight cold, to which the patient is peculi- 
arly susceptible. The cough occurs in paroxysms, and is 
generally worse at morning and evening. As the disease 
advances, the symptoms become similar to those of the 
later stages of Tubercular Consumption, and sometimes 
physicians mistake one disease for the other. 

Persons suffering from Bronchitis do not fully innate 
the lungs, and breathing is more rapid than in health. 



BREATHING ORGANS. 47 

The patient becomes exhausted and labors for breath, 
even upon gentle muscular exercise ; and the ascent of a 
hill, or even a flight of stairs, often proves a great under- 
taking. He frequently sighs and complains of pain or 
soreness of the chest, and of weariness, even in repose. 
Persons in the advanced stage of chronic Bronchitis, 
which is sometimes termed "Bronchial Consumption," 
have usually an active circulation of the blood, which is 
well supplied with red corpuscles — little round bodies 
which float independently in the blood. The absorbents 
and other vessels in the lungs working in great heat, 
caused by rapid breathing, such persons often take cold, 
which is liable to cause Pneumonia (lung fever) and 
Pleurisy, and these maladies lay the foundation for the 
final destruction of the lungs. 

The greater number of deaths from Consumption and 
Mndred diseases, occur in the fall and spring; during 
these seasons, more than any other, throat affections ad- 
vance most rapidly into Consumption. The falling of the 
leaves and the putting forth of foliage, mark the periods 
of greatest mortality from this clasfj of diseases. 



For Throat and Bronchial Affections. 

9 [89] 

There is nothing so prompt and effective as Ayer's 
Inhaling Powder, which is to be obtained of all drug- 
gists or from this Institute. 



9 [90] 

Benzoin — the hardened juice of a tree growing in the 



48 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

islands of the Mediterranean — is soluble in alcohol and 
ether. It is used with signal benefit for inhalation in all 
Bronchial affections. It may be added to boiling water, 
and the vapor inhaled for 15 or 20 minutes several 
times daily ; or may be burnt upon coals, and so inhaled. 



Bronchial Catarrh. 

9 PI] 

This affection it is said, is speedily cured by the inhala- 
tion of sulphurous acid. An eminent English physician 
says, " Consumptive patients should live in rooms where 
hourly one or two drachms of sulphur are evaporated 
on a warm stove. For eight or ten days there is in- 
creased irritation and cough ; then the person rapidly im- 
proves.'' 



For Coryza. 

$ [92] 

The following is thoroughly effective. A drachm of 
Camphor, coarsely powdered, is placed in an ordinary 
coffee-cup, which is then filled with boiling water. Make 
a paper cone, large enough to surround the face, at its 
wide extremity; cover the face and mouth, the small 
end applied to the cup ; breathe freely ; at each inhalation 
draw the steam into the nostrils, and at each exhalation 
force it up against the surface of the nose and face. A 
two-fold action is produced: the steam acts internally 
upon the membrane, and externally, causing profuse per- 
spiration. The cup should be surrounded by a woolen 
cloth to prevent the water cooling, or if a spirit lamp be 
placed beneath the cup, it is still better. Inhale 20 min- 
utes, three or four times in as many hours ; and the cold 
has disappeared. 



BREATHING ORGANS. 49 

Tubercular Consumption. 

In all our Northern, Central, and some of our Western 
states, deaths from pulmonary diseases are alarmingly 
frequent and becoming more and more numerous with ev- 
ery passing year. From the age of 17 to 35 years, the 
period when the nervous force is manifesting its highest 
capabilities, when the brain has acquired its full 6ize, and 
is in full activity, then it is that consumption does its 
dreadful work. More than three fourths of the great 
number who die of the disease fall between these ages, 
but no age, sex or condition is exempt, and no region of 
our country wholly escapes its ravages. Consumption 
prevails most in those countries where an enlightened 
civilization gives to the nervous force its fullest develop- 
ment. It rarely attacks indolent and stupid people. 
The disease annually claims a greater number of victims 
than any other malady. It is the bane of our northern 
climate, and is still more prevalent in Great Britain. 
Let us briefly examine its character. 

Bronchial Consumption has a local origin, as we have 
seen, but Tubercular Consumption is a constitutional 
disease. 

The human constitution is governed by two forces — 
the nervous and the vegetative. In animal life there is 
motion in two directions, or a circuit of motion. Parti- 
cles, which under the vegetative force have been put to 
rest, are perpetually being displaced by the nervous en- 
ergy and reduced to unorganized compounds, to be 
burned in warming the system, or to be cast out by the 

4 



50 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

excretory processes. It is just where the vegetative force 
transcends the nervous, that the body increases in weight 
and acquires that state in which the blood corpuscles 
abound, and the tendency to disease, if at all, is to in- 
flammation. It is the tonic condition of the system. 
Nutrition is more rapid than destruction. On the other 
hand, when the nervous force exceeds the vegetative, 
then the body is attenuated, or reduced in weight, the 
blood thinned and made serous or watery, and the con- 
sumptive condition is established. Now there is too 
much motion. The nutritive particles, instead of tend- 
ing to a state of deposit, for the re-supply of the waste 
matter, perpetually flee. 

In Tubercular Consumption the repeated shocks of the 
nervous battery, sent to the absorbents to quicken them 
in the work of removing waste matter, dislodge much 
that is not yet worn out, and aid in casting out of the 
system much that was designed to be used in its renewal. 
A healthy deposit is thus prevented, and nutrition is at 
an end. The nutritive arteries — those little builders of 
the human frame — are overmastered by the stimulated 
lymphatics; the constructive material is wrested from 
them and borne beyond their reach, and the body wastes 
for want of nourishment ; the blood becomes thin, and 
from the increased serous or watery portion are depos- 
ited upon the lungs and other tissues, formations we call 
tubercles, which at first, are about the size of millet seed, 
and hard, but which become soft, as the destructive pro- 
cess goes on, devouring the lungs from the summit to the 
base. The larynx is sometimes studded with tubercles, 
:i -condition called "Consumption of the Throat." 



BREATHING ORGANS. 51 

Upon the principle I have explained, is found the 
cause of that peculiar smallness of bone and muscle, the 
thinness and tallness of person so peculiar to consump- 
tives. The absorbents, under the power of a very active 
nervous system, take down "the house we live in" faster 
than the nutritive arteries can effect its re-construction. 
It is simply an unbalancing of the antagonistic forces 
which build up and tear down our earthly tenement. It 
is this destructively nervous force which gives to con- 
sumptives their proverbial mental activity — which often 
causes them to dazzle the world with the splendor of 
their gifts, and to bless their friends with the warmth of 
their affections. They are usually the choice spirits — 
the idols of their friends ; their mental movements, and 
the exercise of their affections are characterised by brill- 
iancy and warmth ; they are specimens of partially ethe- 
rialized humanity, stepping lightly across the earth, to 
whom friends passionately stretch out their arms, and 
embrace their shadows. 

In children the vegetative power is very active, while 
the nervous energy is comparatively weak, and hence 
children seldom have consumption. 

The constitutional difference between Tubercular and 
Bronchial Consumption is, that the former is usually at- 
tended, in its origin, by a tolerably good state of the di- 
gestive functions, in connection with bad assimilation or 
disposal of nutriment, while the Bronchial form generally 
has its foundation laid in connection with bad digestion, 
but healthy assimilation. 

There are certain habits or conditions of the system 



52 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

denoting a greater liability than others to Tubercular 
Consumption. Persons of fragile organization, long necks, 
narrow flat chests, prominent shoulders, etc. are usually 
regarded as more liable to the disease than those of 
greater symmetry and better development; but while 
such peculiarity of form and constitution should always 
lead to extraordinary prudence, and avoidance of any 
act, habit or condition that might prove an exciting 
cause, or tend to the development of a tuberculous condi- 
tion, if existing, it should be remembered that all, even 
the strongest, are liable to consumption. 

Long before the stethoscope detects the presence of 
tubercles in the lungs,, the functions of the breathing- 
organs become disordered, and certain symptoms appear 
denoting the advance of consumption. At this critical 
period — decline of the vital powers — medical advice is ur- 
gently required, and if judiciously given and carefully 
heeded, consumption may generally be averted. Among 
the early ominous symptoms, we observe hurried breath- 
ing, a feeble, but excitable pulse, and often an unhealthy 
condition of the throat, or Nasal Catarrh. There is 
general debility, weariness, languor, occasional pain in the 
chest and shoulders, great sensitiveness to cold, breath - 
lessness upon moving quickly, or ascending a flight o. 
stairs; in the young, rapid growth in height, without 
corresponding development; generally a slight cough, 
coldness of the hands and feet, and in some cases, spit- 
ting of blood. 

In the second stage, the symptoms are more strongly 
marked, and others of graver magnitude appear. The 



BREATHING ORGANS. 53 

cough more severe, and is attended with expectoration, 
of variable character, but consumption may become firmly 
established, and even approach a fatal termination, al- 
most without cough. There is loss of appetite, flesh, and 
strength, nervous excitability, difficult breathing, hectic 
fever, night-sweats, dryness of the skin and mouth, 
burning in the palms of the hands and soles of the feet, 
a peculiar lustre of the eye, livid color of the finger 
nails, cough on rising from bed and on lying down, the 
symptoms generally being worse in cold and damp 
conditions of the. atmosphere. 

The causes of Tubercular Consumption include all 
those things which exert a destructive force against the 
digestive and assimilative functions, as improper and in- 
sufficient food, bad habits, night watches, sedentary vo- 
cations, grief, anxiety, and disappointment ; those which 
act injuriously upon the respiratory system, as impure 
air, inflammation of the lungs, pleurisy, measles, whoop- 
ing-cough; such as disturb the perspiratory process, as in- 
sufficient clothing, thin shoes, sudden changes of tem- 
perature, exposure to cold and dampness ; and all acts, 
habits and conditions that tend to exalt the nervous 
force, to excite inflammation of the mucous membrane, to 
impoverish and deprave the blood, and to interrupt nu- 
trition. 

Prominent among the causes, are humidity of the air, 
constrained positions of the body, over-exertion — mental 
or physical — tight-lacing, exhaustive diseases and a great 
deficiency or deterioration of the blood from any cause. 
The continued exercise of the intellect, without due re- 



54 A TUB'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

pose, recreation, and exercise in the pure air, undue ex- 
ercise of the passions and sentiments, are quite as de- 
structive to the vital powers as physical conditions ; and 
in the enumeration of causes, must not be omitted excess- 
ive medication by swallowing drugs. 

The fatality of consumption does not depend upon the 
formation and progress of a single tubercle, nor of a clus- 
ter of them, but upon the continuance of the predisposi- 
tion, or morbid condition of the system tending to the 
deposit of others. The lungs of scrofulous persons have 
almost universally tubercles in them, but there are many 
persons having a predisposition to consumption, who by 
timely precautions, avert the evil and attain advanced 
age in the enjoyment of health. It does not by any 
means follow that because the parents of a person died of 
consumption, he or she must share their fate. 

Very many cases are pronounced Tubercular Consump- 
tion when not the slightest affection of the lungs exists. 
This is done not only by the charlatan, who makes capi- 
tal from the apprehensions of his victim, but often by the 
honest physician, who is misled by certain symptoms 
that are common to other diseases. On the other hand, 
physicians as well as charlatans, often pronounce cases 
" Liver complaint," etc., when in fact consumption has be- 
gun and made great progress. 

The following remedies are the best known to med- 
ical art. In the first rank of remedial means is — 



BREATHING ORGANS. 55 

Medicated Inhalations, 

To derange the nervous system, to interrupt the pro- 
cesses of nutrition, to stupefy the senses, or depress the 
vital forces — always the effect of patent nostrums and 
excessive medication from whatever source — is to detract 
from the recuperative powers of nature, and hence to de- 
prive the sufferer of the opportunity for recovery he 
might have under judicious treatment. 

The human system is more susceptible to the effects of 
remedial means through the respiratory apparatus and 
by the principle of absorption, than in any other manner. 
In Consumption, the assimilative function is always im- 
perfect. Patients become wasted, weak and bloodless, 
and among the first requirements is the re-establishment 
of nutrition. It is of vital importance, therefore, that 
the digestive organs should be in a healthy condition. 
Many of the medicinal preparations, generally sold and 
prescribed, tend to destroy appetite, and otherwise im- 
pair the functions of digestion. The attempt to cure a 
cough merely as such, is utterly useless, and often harmful. 
The aim should be to remove the cause of the cough. 
The cause of irritation suppressed, there is no longer the 
expression of nature proclaiming its presence — the cough 
ceases. Opiates may quiet cough, but they do not re- 
move the cause, and hence they are wholly insufficient, 
and in some cases positively harmful. The judicious em- 
ployment of Medicated Inhalations obviates in a wonder- 
ful degree, the apparent necessity for swallowing great 
quantities of drugs. The inhalants enter the air 



56 A YE TVS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

passages with the breath, and directly affect the lung tis- 
sues and the blood, and by their adaptation to existing 
conditions, the greatest benefit is promptly experienced. 
All the benefit sought from cough mixtures in general 
use, and certain other so-called remedies, may be far 
more promptly and effectually attained than by swallowing 
such drugs, and without the liability of impairing the 
functions of digestion, or of the nervous system. By 
this method, we may introduce remedies to every part — 
the windpipe, the bronchial tubes, and air-cells. 

In addition to the general predisposition to Consump- 
tion, a certain amount of local irritation or congestion is 
necessary to the development of the disease; whatever, 
then, that operates in such a manner as to prevent or re- 
lieve such irritation or congestion, and render the lungs 
less susceptible to the causes which produce it, must ex- 
ercise a most salutary influence, and resist the progress of 
the disease. It is, in fact, a constitutional remedy also, 
one of the greatest value and importance. It exerts a 
most powerful influence over diseased action, and it is 
only in this form that we can administer remedies to act 
locally upon diseased tissues of the lungs. Where tubercles 
have been deposited, and are passing through those pro- 
cesses which terminate in the destruction of the lungs, 
our aim must be to supply those properties of which the 
system has been impoverished, and this can only be done 
by first promoting healthy respiration, and by administer- 
ing the class of remedies which I shall present. 

In the morbid changes of the lung structure, we find 
new and special causes of irritation and congestion con- 



. 



BREATHING ORGANS. 57 

stantly occurring which invite new tuberculous deposi- 
tions. These changes precipitate a fatal termination of 
the disease, not only by preventing or retarding any re- 
medial influence which might be exerted by general 
treatment, but often in themselves operate^ as direct 
causes of suffering and death. These local conditions 
can in nowise, be favorably affected by swallowing medi- 
cines. There is no person of average intelligence, who, 
having drawn into the windpipe some foreign substance 
which would irritate the parts and cause coughing and 
difficult breathing — no person of common sense, who 
would swallow medicine for the purpose of removing the 
obstruction; and yet, many practitioners treat patients 
upon this very plan. As well might a person take purga- 
tive pills for the cure of corns ! 

For these morbid conditions no remedy was known till 
the introduction of Medicated Inhalations — an agency 
that may be applied as directly to the locality af- 
fected, as external applications to the body. When tu- 
berculous matter is beginning to be deposited upon the 
surface of the air-cells and the small air-passages and 
bronchial tubes, why should not the curative agent go di- 
rectly to those parts, and cause, as it would, the immedi- 
ate expulsion of the offending and dangerous matter? 
This is plain common sense. Many a person in consump- 
tion dies of suffocation, not because there is not suffi- 
cient muscular power to expel the matter that is suffo- 
cating him, but simply because the lungs are obstructed 
with secretions which prevent the admission of air, and 
hence they have no means for the expulsion of the offend- 



58 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

ing substance; yet a suitable medicated vapor would 
quickly so change the consistency of the mass, as to per- 
mit its escape, or excite the membrane to throw it off. 

If we apply the ear to the chest of a person in an ad- 
vanced stage of consumption, while he is coughing, a pecul- 
iar rattling sound wili be heard. This denotes that a cavity 
exists in the lungs, and that it contains a fluid which is 
violently agitated. It is an excavated ulcer, with all its 
filthy contents remaining in it day and night and aggra- 
vating its terrible condition. Little wonder that the dis- 
ease has been deemed incurable, when by no possibility 
with the means ordinarily employed, can this matter be 
expelled, Can anything be more reasonable or necessary 
than the introduction of remedies that will cause the ex- 
pulsion of such morbid collections and establish the heal- 
ing process? In consumption and bronchitis the air-pas- 
sages generally undergo some change. The membrane is 
often softened, or the air-passages become enlarged 
throughout, so that in some cases, they increase to ten 
times their normal size ; in other cases the straining in- 
cident to coughing creates an enlargement at some particu- 
lar part, forming a sac which is generally filled with puru- 
lent matter* at other times, a tubercle will, by pressure 
upon an air-tube, so change its form, that when the air is 
drawn through it, a peculiar sound may be heard. All 
these changes are due to causes which the introduction 
of a suitable Inhalant, at the proper time, would certainly 
remove. 

Right at the vital point in the lungs, where the blood 
runs in a ceaseless current, where the whole of it goes 



BREATHING ORGANS. 59 

every two minutes, to renew its vitality, by contact 
with atmospheric air, we have in many cases daily occur- 
ring, inflammation, with roughening or softening of mem- 
brane, with consequent harsh breathing ; morbid secre- 
tions that impede respiration ; tubercles in the hard or 
soft state, adding to the general embarrassment, not only 
lessening the vitality of the blood, but disturbing all the 
sympathies of the system, yet the practice has been, and 
even now generally is, to attack these central disturbers 
of life through the stomach. It is needful to remove 
from the air-passages those products of destructive pro- 
cesses, which if absorbed, would have the effect of poison 
in the blood, and which if suffered to remain, would cause 
irritation, as foreign bodies would do in the same posi- 
tion. It is needful to subdue inflammation of the mem- 
brane, to cause the absorption of tubercles, and to 
stimulate ulcerous cavities to healing ; in fine, it is as es- 
sential to correct morbid conditions of parts accessible to 
remedies, as to correct depravity of the blood, and other 
conditions which primarily caused the disease. All this 
can be done by this method of treatment ; it has been 
done in thousands of cases ; the records of physicians at- 
test it ; patients bear witness to such symptoms as con- 
firm it, and if a doubt remained, numerous post-mortem 
examinations have furnished the most positive ocular 
proof. It is rational to infer that as noxious elements 
are taken into the blood by breathing, in the form of va- 
por, so their antidotes can be taken as easily and effectu- 
ally in the same way. 



60 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH, 

Best Local and Constitutional 
Treatment. 

The best Medicated Inhalants will here be given. All 
are used in the same manner. Any vapor inhaler may 
be used; for want of an instrument for the purpose, one 
may be quickly made, thus : take an empty Quinine bot- 
tle ; perforate the cork in two places ; into one orifice in- 
sert a glass tube, long enough to extend to within an inch 
of the bottom of the bottle ; this is to admit air to the in- 
halant ; the other tube not to extend over an inch below 
the cork; this is the mouth piece. The instrument is 
complete. Remove the cork (the tubes remaining in 
their places and tightly fitted) ; put into the inhaler the 
requisite dose of inhalant and add hot water in a quan- 
tity to rise an inch above the air-tube when the top is put 
on. Cork the instrument, and breathe the vapor for the 
time specified. If properly breathed, the liquid will be 
agitated by the air at every inspiration. The vapor, but 
not the liquid, will pass into all the air-tubes of the lungs. 



Best Alterative Inhalant. 

I* [93] 

Iodine, one drachm; Tinct. Ipecac, two ounces; Tinct. 
Lobelia, six ounces; Ethereal Tinct. Cicuta, one and a 
half ounces; Sulph. Ether, two and a half ounces; Iod. 
Potass., one and a half drachms; Alcohol, two quarts. 
Mix. In almost all conditions in Consumption, either Tu- 
bercular or Bronchial, this may be used with greatest 
benefit. Dose, one to two teaspoonfuls at each inhala- 
tion. Use from one to three times daily, 15 minutes 
each inhalation. Prepare it anew every time. 



BREATHING ORGANS. 61 

Expectorant Inhalant for dry, hard 
Cough, and difficult 
Expectoration. 
3 [94] 

Tinct. Pleurisy Rad., one drachm; Tinct. Scillse, two 
drachms; Tinct. Lobelia, half drachm; Tinct. Black Co- 
hosh, half ounce; Tinct. Queen's Rad., three drachms; 
Tinct. Am. Hellebore, half drachm; Alcohol, eight 
ounces. ' Use as directed in No. 93. 



Another, where there is Fever, hot 
Skin, and rapid Pulse. 

3 [95] 

Tinct. Belladonna FoL, one ounce; Tinct. Black Co- 
hosh, four ounces; Tinct. Am. Hellebore, one ounce; 
Tinct. Poke Rad., half ounce; Tinct. Aconite Rad., two 
ounces ; Alcohol, two quarts. Mix. Use as directed in 
No. 93. 



Astringent Inhalant 
where expectoration is too profuse : — 

9 [96] 

Tinct. wild Indigo, two ounces; Tinct. Catechu, one 
ounce; Tinct. Cinchona, two ounces; Tinct. Golden 
Seal, two ounces; Creosote, half ounce; Alcohol, two 
quarts. Use as directed in No. 93. 



Another Astringent Inhalant. 

5 [97] 

Tinct. Witch-hazel Cort, four ounces; Tinct. Black 
Cohosh, eight ounces ; Alcohol, two quarts. Mix. As 
in No. 93 This is excellent where there is a tendency 
to hemorrhage, or too profuse expectoration. 



62 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Anodyne Inhalant. 

$ [98] 

Alcohol, four ounces ; Naphtha, one drachm ; Benzoic 
Acid, thirty grains; Chloroform, twenty-five drops; 
Tinct. Hyoscyamus, half ounce. Mix. Inhale two tea- 
spoonfuls for 15 minutes, two or three times a day if 
needful. Used without hot water. 



Expectorant Inhalant. 

• $ [99] 

This like the last, is used cold. Alcohol, four ounces ; 
Tinct. Camphor, half ounce ; Tinct. Tolu, two drachms ; 
Naphtha, one drachm ; Benzoic Acid, thirty grains ; Oil 
bitter Almonds, four drops. Occasionally there may be 
added a half drachm Nitric Acid. Inhale two teaspoon- 
fuls for fifteen minutes. Preference is given for the 
warm inhalants. 



Inhalant 

where the symptoms are fever, rapid breathing and nerv- 
ous irritability : — an ounce each of 

$ [100] 

Tincture Golden Seal, Tinct. Aconite Fol, Tinct. Gel- 
seminum, Tincture Lobelia, Tinct. Blood-root, Tinct. 
Hoarhound, Tinct. Elcampane, Tinct Licorice, Tinct. 
Comfrey, Tinct. Rosinweed; Tinct. Veratrum Vir., two 
drachms; Alcohol, three pints. Use as directed in 93. 
The above is an eclectic prescription. Preference given 
for No. 95. 



BREATHING ORGANS. 63 

COUGH PREPARATIONS. 



For Dry and Hard Cough. 

v [ioi] 

Tinct. Sanguinaria, eight ounces; Sulph. Morphia, ten 
grains; Tinct. Digitalis, half ounce; Vini Antimony, 
lour ounces ; 01. Wintergreen, one and a half drachms. 
Mix. Dose, thirty drops three times daily. 



An Excellent Cough Remedy. 

9 [102] 

Syrup Wild Cherry, two ounces : Syrup Auranti Cort, 
two ounces: Syrup Scillse, one ounce; Vini Ipecac, 
half ounce; Fid. ext. Licorice, one drachm; Tinct. 
Opii Camph., seven drachms; Mucil. Acacise, three oun- 
ces; Tinct. Sanguinaria Comp., one and a half drachms; 
Tinct. Fceniculi, two drachms; Tinct. Anise Sem., five 
and a half drachms. Mix. One to one and a half tea- 
spoonfuls three times daily. 



B [103] 

Syrup Tolu, six ounces ; Syrup Scillse, three ounces ; 
Vini Ipecac, one and a half ounces; Tinct. Opii Camph., 
two and a half ounces; Mucil. Acaciae, nine ounces. 
Mix. One to one and a half teaspoonfuls three times a 
day. 



9 [104] 

Syrup Wild Cherry Co., four ounces; Tinct. Opii 
Camph., two ounces. Mix. Half teaspoonful three 
times a day. 



An Excellent Cough Eemedt. 
9 [105] 
Acidi Hydrocyanici medicinalis, forty drops; Mor- 



64 AYEBSS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

phiae Sulph., three grains; Tinct. Sanguinariae ; Vini Ip- 
ecac, of each, half ounce; Syrup Virginianse Pruni, five 
ounces. Mix. A teaspoonful twice daily. Shake the 
bottle before taking, otherwise the acid will rise upon the 
liquid. 



A Domestic Cough Mixture. 

$ [106] 

Fluid ext. Agrimony, twenty drops ; Fluid ext. Elcam- 
pane, one drachm; Fid. ext. Hoarhound, half drachm; 
Fid. ext. Colts-foot, half drachm; Fid. ext. Boneset, 
half drachm ; Fid. ext. Bugleweed, twenty drops ; Fid. 
ext. Comfrey, half drachm; Fid. ext. Ipecac, twenty 
drops; Fid. ext Lungwort, one drachm; Fid. ext. 
Mullein, one drachm; Syrup Simplex, three and a half 
ounces. Mix. A teaspoonful three times daily. 



For Cough Due to Elongated Uvula — 
Palate. 

V 1107] 

Hydrochlorate of Morphine, four grains; Bromide of 
Potass., one drachm; Tinct. of Coca, two drachms; 
Glycerine, one and a half ounces. Mix. Half teaspoon- 
ful three times a day. 



For Hoarseness and Cough. 

# [108] 

Syrup Doveri (Gregory); ext. Licorice Fl. ; Spr. Fru- 
menti; Honey, of each, one ounce. Mix. Teaspoon- 
ful three times daily. 



3 [109] 

Fid. ext. Aconite Rad, twelve drops; Ammon. Muriat., 
four ecruples; Syrup Scillae, one ounce; Syrup Doveri. 
two ounces. Mix. Teaspoonful every three or four 
hours. 



BREATHING ORGANS, 65 

9 [HO] 

Amnion. Carb., one and a half drachms; Syrup Ipecac, 
one ounce; Syrup Doveri, Syrup Tolu, of each, one and 
a half ounces; ext. Licorice Pulv., three drachms. Mix. 
Teaspoonf ul every four hours. 



b [in] 

Morph. Sulph., two grains; Potass. Bromidi, half 
ounce; Tinct. Aconite Rad, half drachm; Syrup Doveri, 
sufficient to make three ounces. Mix. Teaspoonful 
every six hours. 



For a Child Four Years Old. 

I* [112] 

Syrup Ipecac, two drachms; Syrup Scillae, two 
drachms; Syrup Doveri, half ounce; Syrup Pruni Virg., 
sufficient to make two ounces. Mix. Teaspoonful in 
water, every six hours. 



A Valuable Remedy in Consumption. 

9 [113] 

Tinct. Tolu, half ounce; Fid. ext. Lobelise, two 
drachms; Fid. ext. Cannabis Indica, two drachms; 
Morphiae Sulph., four grains; Tartar Emetic, four 
grains; Chloroform, one drachm; Spir. Menth. Vir., 
ten drops; Aquae, eight ounces; Sacchar., fourteen 
ounces, avoirdup. Mix. One teaspoonful, from one to 
three times daily. 



For Acute Laryngitis and False Croup. 

3 [H4] 

Fid. ext. Yerba Santa, three drachms; Sodii Carb., 
twelve grains ; Glycerine, one ounce; Aquae Cinnamoni, 
one and a half ounces. Mix. For a child two years old, 
a teaspoonful every two hours. 

5 



66 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

For Chronic Bronchitis. 

3 [115] 

The following is a good expectorant : Potassii Iodidi, 
one and a half drachms; Fid. ext. Yerba Santa, two 
ounces ; Syrup Pruni Virg. , one ounce. Mix. For an 
adult, a teaspoonful every four hours. 



Useful in Consumption. 

E [116] 

Fid. ext. Yerba Santa; Fid. ext. Pin. Canadensis, of 
each, half ounce; Glycerine or Simple Syrup, three 
ounces. Mix. A teaspoonful three or four times a day. 

If there is difficulty of expectoration add Co. Tinct. 
Sanguinaria, half ounce. If tendency to bleeding of the 
lungs, add Fluid ext. Hamamelis, half ounce. Dose, as 
above. 



Dry and Severe Cough; Also Pneumonia. 

3 [H7] 

Fid. ext. Yerba Santa, two and a half ounces; Tinct. 
Aconite, half drachm; Syrup Simp., one and a half 
ounces. Mix. One teaspoonful every two or three 
hours. Later, in Pneumonia give Quinine in one or 
two grain doses. 

3 [H8] 

Fluid ext. Elder Flowers is useful in colds, Measles 
and Scarlatina. Dose, a teaspoonful. Fluid ext. Blood- 
root as an expectorant is excellent. It may also be ap- 
plied to indolent ulcers and cancers with good results. 
Dose, three or four drops as often as needful. 

Fluid ext. Boneset is useful in coughs, colds, Pneumonia, 
etc. Always safe. Dose, from a half to one teaspoon- 
ful. 

Fid. ext. Bugleweed is useful in obstinate cough, diar- 
rhoea, certain heart difficulties, and for passive hemor- 
rhages. Dose, half to one teaspoonful. 



BREATHING MOANS. 67 

For Cough and Especially Useful in Kidney 
Complications. 

B [1191 

White Pine-tree gum, three ounces ; Alcohol, one pint. 
Dissolve, and add Holland Gin, one quart ; essence Juni- 
per, one ounce.* To three pounds white sugar, add one 
pfnt water ; boil to a syrup, and while hot, add the other 
ingredients, and strain the whole. A tablespoonful 
three or four times daily ; or a teaspoonf ul every hour 
till relieved. 



Expectorant. 

9 [120] 

Tinct. Lobelia, half ounce; Tinct. Sanguinaria, two 
ounces; Oil Spearmint, half drachm; Syrup Scillse, five 
ounces. Mix. Half a teaspoonful every two or three 
hours if needful. Useful in Croup, Asthma, Whooping 
cough, and inflammation of the larynx. 



Another. 

V [121] 

Fid. ext. Seneka, three drachms; Syrup Scillae, half 
drachm; Syrup Tolu, two drachms; Paregoric, two 
drachms; Carbonate Ammonia, twenty grains; Aqua, 
four and a half ounces. Mix. Teaspoonful once or 
twicedaily. 



9 [122] 

The Comp. Tinct. Black Cohosh is very useful in dis- 
eases of the lungs. It is made of Tinct. Black Cohosh, 
two ounces ; Tinct. Bloodroot, half ounce ; Tinct. Poke- 
root, one drachm. Mix. Twenty drops three times 
daily. 



68 ATSE'S MOJITOS OF HEALTH. 

BEST TONICS FOR GENERAL DEBILITY AND 
IMPOVERISHED CONDITION OF BLOOD. 

$[123] 

Quinine and Ferri Citratis, one and a half drachms ; 
Tinct. Nux Vomica, one drachm; Simple Syrup; Aqua 
dest., of each, two ounces. Mix. One teaspoonful three 
times daily. 



Useful Tonic in Chronic Bronchitis. 

$ [124] 

Strychniae Sulphaits; Acid Arseniosi, of each, half 
grain; Pil. Ferri Carb., twenty-four grains ; Oleo-resinge 
Capsici, six drops ; extracti Gentian, twelve grains. 
Mix. Make 24 pills. Dose, one pill three times a day. 

Strychnia increases depth of respiration and pro- 
motes oxygenation of the blood. Also excellent in 
cases where the action of the heart is weak. 



For Debility in Children. 

# [125] 

Tinct. Nux Vomica, half drachm; Fluid extract Hy- 
drastis, one drachm ; Syrup Simplex, sufficient to make 
three ounces. Mix. A teaspoonful a half hour before 
each meal. 



For Debility, Especially Nervous 
Prostration of Adults. 

3 [126] 

Tinct. Nux Vomica, three drachms ; Acid Phos. dilute, 
half ounce; Celerina, one and a half ounces; Fid. ext. 
Coca, one ounce ; Simple Elixir, sufficient to make six 
ounces. Mix. Dose, half teaspoonful before each 
meal. 



B [127] 

Fluid ext. Berberis Aquifolium, one and a half ounces; 



BREATHING ORGANS. 69 

Syrup Hypophosphites Comp., four ounces. Mix. One 
teaspoonful in a glass of water three times daily. Excel- 
lent when the patient is reduced in flesh and strength. 



For Debility and Low Condition of Blood. 

3 [128] ' 

Rose water, six ounces; Mur. Tinct. of Iron, half 
ounce ; Syrup of Orange peel, one and one half ounces. 
Mix. A teaspoonful in a wine glass of water, after each, 
meal. 



Best Tonic Pills. 

3 [129] 

Ferri Citratis, one drachm; Sulph. Quinia, one 
scruple; ext. Nux Vom., eight grains. Mix. Make 
thirty-two pills. One pill before or after each meal. 



Tonic Mixture. 

$ [130] 

Quassia, half ounce ; Sub. Carb. Sodae, half drachm ; 
Capsicum, six grains; Ferri Citratis, two drachms; Co- 
lumbo, three drachms ; Cinchona, three drachms. Mix. 
Put the mixture into an earthen vessel, and add a 
quart of boiling water; cover, and let the mixture 
stand two or three hours ; then pour it into a jug, and 
add a pint best whiskey. Dose, a tablespoonful before 
each meal. 



A Good Medicine-Food for Consumptives. 

5 [131] 

The yolks of eight eggs and six tablespoonfuls sugar, 
beaten to a cream; a third of a nutmeg grated in, and 
beaten again ; a gill of brandy or Jamaica rum, and a 
wine-glass of Madeira poured in; then the whites of 
the eight eggs, reduced to a froth, beaten in, to which is 
added three pints of milk. It is generally well received. 



70 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

To Promote Appetite. 

B [132] 

Columbo (or Cinchona), two ounces; Taraxacum 
one ounce; Leptandrin, one drachm; Sarsaparilla, one 
ounce; Stillingia, half ounce; Wahoo, two drachms. 
Mix. Add two quarts best whiskey. Let it stand 14 
days. Filter; then add a pint of native wine and a 
quart of water. Dose, one or two teaspoonfuls before 
each meal. 



Blood Restorative. 

3 [133] 

Co. Tinct. Cinchona, four ounces; Citrate of Iron, 
one ounce; Tinct. Cascarilla, half ounce. Mix. Half 
teaspoonful three times daily. 



9 [134] 

The Maltine Preparations, Beef, Wine and Iron, Cod 
Liver Oil, Phillip's Emulsion (Cod Liver Oil and Hypo- 
phosphites) are all commended, and especially the latter, 
in all cases of low conditions of blood. 



3 [135] 

Iron by Hydrogen (Quevenna) is tonic and peculiarly 
fitted to improve the quality of the blood, when impover- 
ished. It should not be taken in any inflammatory dis- 
ease. Dose, three to six grains, in pill, three or four 
times daily, just before or after eating. 



Excellent in Debility. 

3 [136] 

Ferri Phosphas, one hundred and twenty grains; 
Quinige, sixty grains; Strychniae, one grain. Mix. 
Make one hundred pills. One just before meals. 



3 [137] 

Quinise Bi-Sulph., thirty grains ; Ferri Sulph., Exsic, 



BREATHING ORGANS. 71 

forty-eight grains; Acid Arseniosum, one grain; ext. 
Taraxaci, thirty grains. Mix. Make twenty-four pills. 
One pill three times daily. 



A Good General Tonic. 

3 [138] 

Strychnia, one-hundredth grain; Phosphorus, one- 
hundredth grain ; extract Cannabis Indica, one sixteenth 
grain; Ginseng, one grain; Ferri Carb., one grain. 
Mix. Taken in a single pill. One pill like this may be 
taken twice daily. 



Foe, Exhaustion from Overwork. 

^ [139] 

In such cases, the symptoms center chiefly about the 
heart. The action of that organ may be feeble, with in- 
termittent beat, fainting, palpitation, difficult breathing, 
and giddiness. 

Quinise Sulph., twenty-four grains; Mist. Camphor, 
sufficient to make six ounces; Acid Hydrobromic dil., 
three drachms; Tinct. Digitalis, half ounce; Liq. Au- 
rant, one ounce; Tinct. Nuc. Vomica, two drachms. 
Mix. One teaspoonful three times daily. 



A Combination Valuable as a Nutritive 
Tonic. 

3 [140] 

Phosphorus, one grain; Quiniae Sulph., fifty grains. 
Mix. Make fifty pills. One pill three times daily with 
meals. 

This may be taken in most cases where quinine can be 
taken; the quinine is more active in this form than 
when administered alone. The combination is good in 
Bronchitis and Consumption, where there rapid wast- 
ing and night-sweats. 



72 A YE IPS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Especially Valuable in Chlorosis. 

$ [141] 

Glycero-Sanguinarin, two ounces; Ferri Iodidi, eight 
grains; Manganesii Sulph., one drachm. Mix. Dose, 
fifteen or twenty drops three times a day. 



Tonic for Children. 

n [U2] 

Potass. Bromidi, twenty grains ; Acid Phosph. dil. ; 
Tinct. Ferri Chloridi, of each two drachms ; Syrup Lim- 
onis; Aqua dest., of each one and a half ounces. Mix. 
A teaspoonf ul three times daily, for a child 3 to 5 years 
old. 



EXTERNAL APPLICATIONS. 

Both in Consumption and diseases of the air passages 
and of the Pleura, certain external applications are often 
of very great benefit. 



An Excellent Counter-Irritant, or 
Embrocation. 
$ [143] 

Tinct, Arnica; Spirits Camphor, of each, three 
ounces; Tinct. Cantharides, three and a half ounces; 
Oil Croton, one and a half ounces. Mix. Apply with 
camel' s-hair brush, after vigorous friction. 



For Local Pain. 

B [144] 

Fluid ext. Aconite Rad; Tinct. Iodine, of each, equal 
parts. Mix. Apply with brush after vigorous fric- 
tion. It dries quickly. Relieves almost instantly. 
May be repeated daily if needful. 



For Night- Sweats. 
$ [145] 
Tinct. Belladonna ; Whiskey, equal parts. Mix. Sponge 



BREATHING ORGANS. 73 

the parts of the body where the sweating occurs. Ap- 
plied before the attack, it prevents it ; during the period 
of perspiration, it promptly arrests it. Four teaspoon - 
fuls of the mixture, applied with the hand is sufficient 
for the entire body. Reliable in every case. 

9 [146] 

Night sweats may often be prevented by drinking 
freely of cold, strong sage tea, just before retiring. 

A sponge bath of salt water is often effectual. The 
night-dress dipped in the strongest solution of salt-wa- 
ter, and perfectly dried, without wringing, is a good pre- 
ventive. The following may be taken: — 



9 [147] 

Oxide Zinci, one drachm; ext. Conii, half drachm. 
Mix. Make thirty pills. One pill each night on retir- 
ing. Or — 

3 [148] 

Fluid ext. Witch Hazel (Hamamelis) may be taken in 
doses from twenty to sixty drops. This is also excel- 
lent for hemorrhage, or for bowel difficulties. Or — 

3 [140] 

Aromatic Sulphuric Acid, fifteen drops, in water be- 
fore retiring. This is known as "Sour drops." Should 
be taken through a glass tube, or it is liable to injure the 
teeth. 



Liniment for Pain. 

3 [150] 

White soap, six ounces; Camphor, five and a half 
ounces ; Oil Rosemary, half ounce ; Alcohol, one quart ; 
Opium, one and a half ounces. Mix. Filter. Apply 
two or three times dailv. 



3 [151] 

Fluid ext. Capsicum, with Alcohol makes a good 
stimulating lotion. 



74 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

3 [152] 

The use of an alcoholic lotion, consisting of a strong 
solution of salt-water and Alcohol, equal parts, is excel- 
lent for local pain and soreness. Dry friction, with 
the hand or flesh-brush is productive of good, in nearly 
all cases of pain. 

A mustard paste combined with the white of an egg^ 
will not blister, and will prove quite as effective as with- 
out the egg. 



Liniment for Pain. 

B [153] 

Chloroform, four drachms; Tinct. Anise, one ounce; 
Tinct. Opium, half ounce ; Alcohol, four ounces. Mix. 
Apply with a piece of soft linen, wherever there is pain 
or soreness. 



or 

9 [154] 

Oil Hemlock, two drachms; Oil Origanum, one 
drachm; Camphor, one drachm; Opium, one drachm; 
Alcohol, four ounces. Mix. Apply several times a day. 



OR 

9 [155] 

Tinct. Opium, Camphorated Oil, and Soap-liniment, 
of each, two ounces. Mix. Apply several times a day. 



OR 

^ [156] 

Aqua Ammonia and Alcohol, equal parts. Or Aqua 
Ammonia, one part, to three parts of Olive Oil. Avoid 
breathing the liniment. 



3 [157] 

Oil-silk placed over the chest of a person suffering 
from Pneumonia, or Pleurisy, will give great relief and 
hasten recovery. 



BREATHING ORGANS. 75 

The So-called Cherokee Liniment. 

3 [158] 

Gum Camphor, one ounce; dissolve in four ounces 
Alcohol; Spirits Turpentine, Olive Oil, Oil Hemlock, 
Oil Origanum, and Oil of Cedar, of each one ounce; 
Aqua Ammonia, two ounces. Mix. Shake well. Will 
often relieve pain in the chest, in Consumption, etc. 



Pain Paint. 

3 [159] 

Oil of Peppermint, five drops ; Chloroform, ten drops ; 
Acetic Ether, six drops ; Essential Oil of Mustard, ten 
drops ; Oil of Valerian, five drops. Mix. Apply with a 
camel' s-hair brush. 



HEMORRHAGE, OR BLEEDING OF THE 
LUNGS. 

3 [160] 

The best immediate remedy is Spirits of Turpentine, 
in doses of fifteen or twenty drops, on sugar. Repeat, if 
necessary. A single dose is usually sufficient. 

Common table salt will also arrest blood spitting. 

When spitting of blood is of frequent occurrence, the 
Oil of Erigeron, in four-drop doses, on sugar, may be 
taken, and repeated at intervals of three hours, on the 
day of occurrence. 



J* [161] 

Ergot by Hyperdermic injection is often a prompt 
remedy. Fluid extract Ergot in doses of from forty to 
sixty drops, is often given with great benefit. 



$ [162] 

Liverwort is often used for the 6ame purpose, espe- 
cially if attended with cough. The infusion — four 



76 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

ounces Liverwort to a pint of water — may be freely taken. 

Bethroot is also used lor the same purpose. The in- 
fusion is taken, and used as a gargle, for ulceration of the 
mucous membrane and sore mouth. It is valuable in 
cough, Asthma, and difficult breathing. 

Fluid ext. Fireweed is useful in all passive hemor- 
rhages, of the lungs, uterus or hemorrhoids. Dose, 
thirty to sixty drops. Hard-leaf Golden Rod is tonic, 
astringent and styptic, and a good remedy for Pulmonary 
hemorrhage, and also for bleeding from the stomach or 
bowels. The powder and infusion are both used inter- 
nally and externally. 



The following is an excellent prescription for blood- 
spitting: — 

$ [163] 

Dextro-Quinise, one drachm; Ergotinse, one drachm; 
Digitalis Pulv., and ext. Hyoscyam. of each, five grains. 
Mix. Make forty pills. Dose, two pills every two or 
three hours, in cases of bleeding from the lungs or nose. 



OR 

» [164] 

Five drops each of Spirits Turpentine, and Tinct. 
Hamamelis in an ounce of Mist. Amygdalae, may be given 
three times a day. The patient should lie down, and be 
iree from all excitement or motion, and use cold acidu- 
lated drinks, if any are taken. 



DIARRHOEA OF CONSUMPTION. 

Excellent Remedy. 

B [165] 

Sub-nitrate Bismuth, ten, twenty, or thirty grains af- 
ter every motion of the bowels. Two or three doses gen- 
erally suffice to correct the difficulty, but in chronic 



BREATHING ORGANS. SL 

time the remedies to be prescribed; and, again, Medicated 
Inhalations hold the first rank in the list of remedial 
atrcncies. 



Best Prescriptions. 

Ax Excellent Remedy. 

3 [178] 

Iod. Potass, half ounce; Co. Tinct. Gentian, two 
ounces; Aqua, six ounces. Mix. Dose, half tea- 
spoonful three times daily. May be taken four or five 
times in the 24 hours, if there are asthmatic symptoms. 



S [179] 

Fid. Ext. Rosinweed, two ounces; Green Gelseminum 
Bad., half ounce; Juniper berries, two ounces; Acetic 
Acid (No. 8), half ounce; Sugar, eight ounces; Alcohol 
sufficient to make one pint of syrup. Mix. Dose," one 
teaspoonful twice daily. 



3 [180] 

Syrup Scillae, three and half ounces; Fid. Ext. Rosin- 
weed, half ounce. Mix. Dose, two-thirds of a teaspoon- 
ful three times daily. Also use Inhalant 3 94. 

The Rosinweed always relieves, and often cures. The 
dose of the Fluid Extract is from ten to thirty drops, 
but it is usually combined with other expectorants. 



3 [181] 

Iod. Potass., one drachm; Yini Ipecac, two drachms; 
Spirits Ether Co., one drachm; Syrup Simplex, one 
drachm ; Aqua pura, five ounces. Mix. A teaspoonful 
every two hours during the paroxysm. 



To prevent headache and coryza after taking large 
doses Iodide Potass., quarter of a grain of the Extract of 



82 AYERS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Belladonna may be taken every evening, for a few day: 
This will cure the Iodism. 



$ [182] 

Some physicians maintain that the best means of 
overcoming a paroxysm consists in sub-cutaneous injec- 
tions of Morphia, and inhalations of Ethyl,— twelve 
drops poured on a handkerchief and inhaled. It gives 
almost instant relief. 

In Catarrhal Asthma, the treatment must be directed 
against the bronchitis and laryngitis. In nervous 
Asthma, Bromide and Iodide Potass, are the most useful 
remedies, especially Iodide Potass. 



An Old English Remedy. 

P, [183.] 

Syrup Squill, Fluid Extract Lobelia, Fid. Ext. Pleurisy 
root, Fid. Ext. Ginger, of each one ounce; water, one 
pint; Alcohol, three pints. Mix. Dose, one or two tea- 
spoonfuls at the beginning of the paroxysm. This prep- 
aration may succeed with some persons, but it is not as 
good as ^ 178 or 181. 



3 [184] 

The Fluid Extract Euphorbia Pilulifera is esteemed as 
a remedy for Asthma, but has not been extensively 
introduced or sufficiently proven, to warrant confident 
claim of extraordinary curative properties, in this ail- 
ment. It is certainly useful in Asthma, and also in 
bronchial affections. Dose, half to one teaspoonful 
three times daily. 



$ [185] 

Belladonna Extract is of decided value in relaxing 
spasms, and is useful in spasmodic Asthma. Dose, 



BREATHING ORGANS. S3 

quarter of a grain, in pill, for an adult, may be taken 
twice daily. 



Nn Expectorant. 

3 [138] . 

Morphia Sal ph., one grain; Tinct. Sangainaria Can.,, 
three drachms; Vin. Antimony, half ounce: Vin. Ipecac,, 
three drachms ; Syrup Simplex, two ounces. Mix. Dose., 
twenty drops three times a day. 



B [1ST] 

Ext. Qaebracho, fluidi; Ext. Grindiliae Robustse, of 
each one ounce ; Glycerine and Aqua Pura, of each three 
ounces. Mix. Teaspoonful every three hours. 



As everybody knows, the smoking of saltpeter paper, or 
Btrammonium will quickly terminate a paroxysm, but the 
latter cannot be commended. 




III. 

HEART DISEASES. 

Structure and Functions of the Heart. 

(Sp^HE heart lies between the lungs, a little to the 
tug) left side. It is about five inches in length, 
three and a half in its greatest breadth, and 
two and a half in thickness. In man, its weight 
is about 11 ounces, in woman, 9 ounces. It is en- 
closed in a very thin membrane called the pericardium, 
and is nearly covered by the edges of the lungs. The 
cavities of the heart — two auricles and two ventri- 
cles — for receiving and forcing out the blood, are lined 
with a delicate membrane, the "endocardium." The 
heart is supplied with several valves, and the entire or- 
gan is not only perfectly protected, but is shaped and 
constituted for sustaining the greatest amount of labor. 
The heart is an involuntary muscle which performs more 
labor than any other muscle of the body. Through it 
12,000 pounds, or twenty-four hogsheads, of blood pass 
every twenty-four hours. Sick or well, sleeping or wak- 
ing, it never stops for a moment, till all its work is done. 
What a wonderful thing is this little engine which moves 
all the wheels of life ! 
(84) 



HEART DISEASES. 85 

Here the dark or venous blood is received, and thence 
conveyed to the lungs, for aeration; then it returns, a 
bright red, vital current, fit for giving life to all the tis- 
sues of the body, to which it is supplied by the arteries. 
As the blood vessels approach the surface, they become 
as fine as hair. 

The average frequency of the wrist pulse in healthy 
adults, is from 70 to 75 per minute; in infancy it is 120, 
and at 60 years of age, it seldom exceeds 50 per minute. 
In tall and stout persons, it is slower than in others, and 
in women it is from five to ten beats quicker than in men. 
The wrist pulse of a healthy man, when standing is 74; 
when sitting it is 70; when lying down it is 64. In 
sleep, the heart rests; its work is ten beats a minute, or 
six hundred an hour, less than under other circumstances, 
or a saving of 5,000 beats in the period ordinarily devoted 
to repose; and as the heart is throwing six ounces of 
blood at every stroke, it makes a difference of 30,000 
ounces of lifting during a single night. Such is the rest 
the heart gets when people eat and drink properly, and 
take proper repose; but with late suppers, drinking in- 
toxicants, ancT turning night into day, there is no such 
saving of vital force, and life is correspondingly abridged. 

If there is palpitation of the heart, there may be either 
functional or organic disease, or merely nervous irrita- 
bility of the system. If the pulse becomes unusually 
slow, there may be pressure on the brain, or functional 
disturbance of that organ, as from the action of opiates 
and other narcotics. We find the pulse very slow and 
feeble, where persons have taken overdoses of laudanum, 



86 AYEWS MONITOR OF BE ALT II. 

morphine, etc. ; and very rapid, and of variable character 
as to force, in fever, after severe muscular exertion, and 
during great mental excitement. In some persons of 
nervous temperament, it is at all times above the ordinary 
standard. In disease, a pulse which at all times exceeds 
120 beats per minute, denotes a serious affection, and if 
of 140, long continued and feeble, it is indicative of great 
danger. "When the pulse is feeble and easily compressed, 
it indicates extreme debility. In some cases of func- 
tional and organic disease of the heart, it omits to con- 
tract with regularity, and an intermittent pulse is found. 
Fainting results from a failure of the heart, in force or fre- 
quency of action, or both. In Spasmodic Asthma, and in 
all congestions of the lungs, the right side of the heart cir- 
culates the blood with difficulty, showing the existence 
of a great obstruction to its motion through the small 
blood vessels of the lungs. There are few persons in 
whom there is not some tendency to an irregularity of 
the circulation, which shows itself by a torpor in some 
parts, and undue activity in others. One of the most 
common forms of this, especially among individuals who 
work their brains more than their muscles, is a sluggish 
current in the extremities, and great activity in the head 
circulation ; so that the head is habitually heated, while 
the hands and feet are cold. When such is the case, we 
find that even the increased action produced by the tak- 
ing into the stomach of food, aggravates this disordered 
condition, so that the face becomes flushed, and the head 
more hot, after meals, than at any other time. Precisely 
the same result is observed in such persons after the use 
of even a small quantity of alcoholic stimulant. 



HEART DISEASES. 87 

Less blood is sent to the brain at night, than during 
the day. The muscles receive more blood in a state of 
activity than at rest, and hence the necessity for exer- 
cise in the open air. 

It is not surprising that the heart, so wonderfully 
made, — performing a hundred thousand contractions in 
24 hours, independent of the will, an organ so easily af- 
fected by the causes which war against life — should be 
subject to a variety of diseases, but it is a cause for won- 
der, when we consider its structure and functions, and 
reflect upon the faulty habits of mankind, that heart 
diseases are not more frequent, and more generally fatal, 
than they are. 

It is a popular conviction that heart diseases are in- 
curable; and the majority of the people entertain the 
erroneous idea, which many dishonorable or ignorant phy- 
sicians sustain, that all who are afflicted with any affec- 
tion of the heart, will inevitably fall victims to it, yet cer- 
tain diseases of the heart are curable, and are often 
cured, and certain other diseases may exist for many 
years and exert but little influence in the abridgement of 
life; it is equally true, that certain other affections of the 
organ always terminate fatally, and that persons so af- 
flicted, are especially liable to die at any moment. Noth- 
ing is more hazardous to life than to use patent nostrums, 
where a heart disease exists, and yet we find every char- 
latan assuming to treat diseases of the heart! Little 
wonder that their unfortunate and too credulous patients 
find all such affections incurable and early fatal. The 
belief by the patient, in the absolute fatality of his dis- 



S8 A YEWS 210 NIT OR OF HEALTH. 

ease, may render it incurable, for the mental condition 
consequent upon such conviction tends in a very great 
degree to hasten the progress and increase the danger of 
the ailment. 



Diseases of the Heart. 

Among the most frequent diseases of the heart are 
dilatation and hypertrophy of the auricles and ventricles, 
ossification, and excrescences of the valves, enlargement, 
inflammation, softening, hardening, shrinking, a condition 
of being overloaded with fat, inflammation of the peri- 
cardium and of the endocardium (or membrane lining 
the cavities), diseases of the valves, water within the peri- 
cardium (or "dropsy of the heart''), also palpitation, 
and neuralgia — the latter being most distressing symp- 
toms which may arise from organic, or from functional 
disease. 

Hypertrophy of the heart is that form of disease in 
which the walls of the organ, or some one or more of its 
cavities are enlarged or thickened be3'ond the normal size. 
It may affect all the cavities. In this disease, there may 
be prominence of the chest, in advanced cases, and among 
the marked symptoms there is usually extreme difficulty 
of breathing, dropsy, a livid and bloated countenance, 
and bluish lips. The heart often attains a very great size, 
and acts with remarkable violence. There is a swollen 
or dropsical condition of the lower extremities. 

Rupture of the heart may be caused by a blow T , or by 
heavy weight upon the chest. In atrophy or shrinking 
of the heart, the pulse is thread-like and weak. 



HEART DISEASES, 89 

Softening of the heart is not "uncommon, and is often 
attendant on obesity. In such cases there is feeble, in- 
termittent pulse, tendency to fainting, and the movements 
and sounds of the heart are feeble. 

The causes of heart diseases sometimes consist in 
hereditary predisposition, or in some disease which de- 
ranges its action, especially disease of the Breathing or- 
gans, or Asthma, muscular efforts of great violence, 
mental emotions, also, and very often, Kheumatism. It is- 
stated by eminent writers that Pericarditis — inflamma- 
tion of the heart-case — exists in at least a third of the 
cases of acute rheumatism. Many persons fully recover 
from this form of disease. Endocarditis, — an inflamma- 
tion of the lining membrane of the cavities — may be 
caused by exposure to inclement weather. Carditis — in- 
flammation of the organ itself, — is also due to exposure, 
and is liable to occur in persons who dwell in cold an,d 
damp regions. It is often a complication of Kheumatism. 

In valvular affections of the heart, peculiar sounds 
may be distinctly heard, by placing the ear to the chest. 

Among the symptoms of heart diseases are : great op- 
pression of the chest, with difficult breathing, which is 
always aggravated by muscular exertion, hurried move- 
ments, or ascending a hill or flight of stairs. In advanced 
stages of certain heart affections, not only muscular 
movements cause great suffering, but even the horizontal 
posture is quite insupportable. In some cases, the action 
of the heart is very feeble and irregular, and in others it 
is violent. Pain is a very common symptom, but it may 
occur in other localities, near or remote, almost as fre- 



SO ITER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

quently as in the heart itself. At times there is vertigo 
or giddiness ; the sleep is generally disturbed by frightful 
dreams. In many cases, there is a peculiar appearance 
of the skin, the lips and the eyes, a pufnness of the eye- 
lids and face ; the patient cannot sleep upon the left side ; 
and there are other symptoms, which are considered by 
the physician. 

Of the multiplicity of causes which may induce heart 
diseases, there are none, perhaps, more potent or more 
frequent than care, anxiety, grief and despondency. In 
our fast age, the mental labor, the constant strain upon 
the nervous system, the repeated shocks incident to busi- 
ness life, in the great struggle for wealth, competence or 
subsistence, the sudden reverses of fortune, anxiety con- 
cerning contingencies and results, the incessant applica- 
tion in close counting houses, factories, shops and offices, 
and other neglect and violation of the laws of life, are 
prolific causes of these dangerous maladies. Mental 
emotions and operations exert as powerful an influence 
upon the action of the heart as the use of stimulants, 
and it is equally true, that functional derangements of the 
heart, long continued, finally result in organic disease. 
And when to the mental causes are also added those 
which often ensue in the physical system, especially in 
business life, such as dyspepsia, breathing impure air, 
late hours at night of toil, study, or, worse yet, of dissi- 
pation, licentiousness, drunkenness and gluttony, this 
course of life continued month after month, and year 
after year, will assuredly exert a most powerful influence 
in the causation of heart diseases, which nothing less 



HEART DISEASES. 91 

than reform and return to correct habits can prevent 
from culminating in heart diseases, even though no he- 
reditary predisposition may exist. 

The breathing of impure air is a fruitful source of 
heart disease, especially occurring after middle life. 
How many people ignorantly favor its occurrence, by 
confining themselves to closely shut, non-ventilated, hot, 
stifling rooms, in which carbonic acid has accumulated 
to two or three per cent of the air they breathe ! The 
constant breathing of air containing one per cent only, of 
carbonic acid proves fatal to life, but if it is breathed for 
a short time only, functional disturbance alone is pro- 
duced. It is, however, certain that in this functional dis- 
turbance there is danger, and great liability to organic 
disease. Half the population of our northern cities and 
towns pass six months of the year in overheated rooms, 
the temperature of which renders them morbidly sensi- 
tive to the external air, when they have to encounter it, 
and produces a multiplicity of colds and chills, often ripen- 
ing into Pulmonary diseases. 

Another potent cause of heart disease is the use of to- 
bacco, the effects of which are deleterious in all respects, 
and more especially in relation to the heart. Persons 
who indulge in gluttony or drunkenness, or even in the 
moderate use of intoxicants, or in excesses of any kind ; 
persons who are addicted to the use of opium, in any form, 
or even strong coffee ; those whose diet is too rich, and 
stimulating, or too meagre — are all especially liable to 
some affection of the heart. 

There is another cause — one of the gravest and most 



92 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

dreadful, which is sending thousands to the grave, and 
often planting the germ of disease for future generations — 
I allude to foeticide, an evil of the greatest magnitude. 
The wearing of unsuitable or insufficient clothing, tight 
lacing, — indeed all acts, habits and conditions which ex- 
alt or depress the nervous force, are causes of such mala- 
dies. Malaria, and the injudicious use of quinine, often 
causes disease of the heart. 

The little organ, that during the three-score and ten 
years beats three thousand million times, without ceasing, 
and propels half a million tons of blood, surely requires 
the best care we can give, and the most favorable con- 
ditions we can secure. 



Prescriptions for Various Conditions 
of the Heart. 



To Control Arterial Excitement. 

When there is pain in the region of the heart, violent 
action of that organ, etc. 

3 [188] 

Digitalis Pulv. ; Ext. Hyoscyamus, of each one grain. 
Mix. Make two pills. Dose, one pill. Repeat in the 
course of a few hours, if needful. 



For Irregular Action of the Heart. 

3 [189] 

Digitalis Pulv., ten grains; Pulv. Colchici Sem., 
twenty grains; Sodii Bicarbonas, thirty grains. Mix. 
Make twenty powders, one of which may bo taken three 
or four times daily. 



HEART DISEASES. 93 

The above has been used by Dr. Bowditch, of Boston, 
for 25 years. 



For Endocarditis — Inflammation of the 
Interior Membrane of the Heart. 

3 [190] 

Apply a large blister over the region of the heart. 
Maintain perfect rest, in recumbent position, take acidu- 
lated drink, avoid all stimulants or other exciting 
causes, mental or physical; no coffee, no spirituous 
liquors, no tobacco. If the heart's action be disturbed, 
Tinct. Digitalis is to be given, in doses of twenty drops, 
twice a day, and gradually increased to forty drops; its 
use to be suspended as soon as expedient. The Tinct. 
of Convallaria Maialis, in teaspoonful doses, once daily, 
will sometimes prove quite as efficacious as Digitalis. 
With regular pulse, give Tonics and especially soluble 
iron preparations. A selection may be made from the 
formulae, " Tonic Treatment of Consumption." 



Difficult Breathing with Palpitation. 

9 [191] 

Tinct. Veratri Viridis, three drops; Syrup Zingiberis. 

one drachm; Aquae, one ounce. Mix. Two teaspoon- 
iuls every hour till the palpitation ceases. 



An Excellent Heart Regulator. 

When there is palpitation or congestion of the vessels 
of heart or lungs: — 

9 [192] 

Tinct. Digitalis, one and a half drachm; Aromat. 
Spirits Ammo., two drachms; Aqua dest., sufficient to 
make three ounces. Mix. One teaspoonful every two 
or three hours. 



94 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Arterial Sedative 

B [193] 

Norwood's Tinct. Veratrum Viride in one drop doses 
every hour, will prove an excellent sedative. In over- 
doses, it causes vomiting, which may be corrected with 
brandy, etc. , or mustard paste over the stomach. 



$ [194] 

The Valerianate of Zinc 

is anti-spasmodic, and is excellent for Palpitation. Dose, 
one to two one-grain pills, several times a day. 



? [195] 

The Fluid Extract Gelseminum 

is of great value in heart disease; and is required in 
intermittent and malarial fevers. Dose, three to five 
drops, twice or three times a day. 



3 [196] 

Valvular Diseases of the Heart 
dependent upon functional disturbances. These ail- 
ments are often cured by Juniper, and strict attention 
to diet. The diet must be alkaline. All acids — vine- 
gar, wine, cider, etc. forbidden. Mild vegetable •diet 
approved. Occasional baths of luke-warm salt water, — 
or boracic, or salicylic acid in the water — often prove 
useful. In palpitation, absolute rest is enjoined. 



3 [197] 

The Fluid Extract Collinsonia is alterative and 
diuretic and is very useful in heart and pulmonary 
diseases. Dose, ten to thirty drops. 



HEART DISEASES. 95 

Foil Irregular Action of the Heart, 

F P [198] 
and especially palpitation, the compound wine of Cactus 
is often given: — Tincture Cactus Grandiflorus, four 
ounces: Tinct. Calabar Bean, four ounces; Extract 
Vanilla, half ounce ;* Sherry Wine, twenty-four ounces. 
Mix. Half teaspoonful according to indications, once 
or twice a day. 



Varicose Veins. 

m B [199] 

* The best remedy is the following: — 

Alcoholic Extract of the bark of Witch-hazel (Hama- 
melis Virg.) and Tinct. of the leaves. Two one-grain 
pills made of this extractmay be given before break- 
fast and after dinner. 

In hemorrhoids, suppositories of one and a half grains, 
may be applied morning and night. The tincture is 
applied locally, but diluted one-half with water. A 
salve prepared from one drachm of the extract and six 
drachms of vaseline is highly useiul. In case of varicose 
ulcers, and a dropsical condition of the legs, fifty pills 
and a few ounces of the Tincture Hamamelis are usually 
sufficient to cure or very materially improve the condi- 
tion. At any period of life, it is an excellent remedy 



In disorders of the heart due to derangement of the 
nervous system, the cause of disturbance must be prop- 
erly treated, and reference therefore is made to the 
prescriptions of the best nervines, given in former 
pages. 






rtr. 

THE LIVER. 



Functions and Diseases of the Liver. 

IppHE liver is situated on the right side of the body 
ill^j) j^st below the diaphragm — the large muscle 
^gvg which separates the chest from the abdominal 
cavity. It is convex on the upper surface and 
-concave on the lower. It is the largest organ in the 
T)ody, and in a person of medium stature, weighs four or 
five pounds. Its longest diameter is about twelve inches. 
Its substance is far more dense than that of the lungs. 

It is the office of the liver to secrete or separate from 
the venous blood, a fluid called bile. This is secreted 
slowly during a long period of fasting, and rapidly during 
healthy nutrition. It is a dark, greenish-yellow sub- 
stance. The liver relieves the system of such hydro-car- 
bonaceous matters as are not carried off by the breathing 
organs. A diet of flesh tends to produce more bile, than 
does vegetable or mixed food. Even the drinking of a 
large quantity of water increases its amount. Calomel 
increases its fluid element and diminishes its solid part. 
Carbonate of Soda diminishes both parts. 
(96) 



THE LIVER. 97 

The liver is instrumental in the formation of fat and 
sugar. In sound health, fat constitutes nearly a quarter 
of the weight of the body. By the liver, fat is formed 
from sugar. The administration of Ether, Chloroform, 
the conditions of old age, the influence of several dis- 
eases, as Chronic Bronchitis, Asthma and Pleurisy, all 
tend to the accumulation of sugar in the excretion of 
the kidneys. 

Over-work of the liver predisposes it to various disor- 
ders ; and every disturbance of the functions of the or- 
gan proves an additional source of disease and derange- 
ment of the digestive operations, in which the action of 
this gland has so important a share. When from any 
cause, the liver becomes torpid or less active than in 
health, or the ducts become clogged, the bile is not with- 
drawn from the blood, but remains, and is diffused 
throughout the system, causing a great deal of suffering 
and a diversity of symptoms, some of which are those of 
poisoning, such as nausea, vomiting, headache, giddiness, 
etc. In such cases, there is a yellowish color of the skin 
and eyes, which becomes deeper or darker according to 
the degree of the depravation of the blood, loss of appe- 
tite, constipation, a dry or furred condition of the tongue, 
disordered vision, restlessness and great depression of 
spirit. The secretions of the body, all become perverted; 
even the fluids of the mouth and throat become acrid, 
and give rise to, or aggravate existing diseases of the mu- 
cous membrane, or lining of the air-passages. There is a 
bitter taste in the mouth ; the pulse is variable — acceler- 
ated, full or feeble ; great drowsiness or lassitude ; often 

7 



98 AYE&S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

there is a dull pain or aching of the side, in the region of 
the liver. 

This condition sometimes continues for days, for 
weeks, or for months. It may be induced by heat, mi- 
asma, errors in diet, depressing emotions, or by indo- 
lence, and neglect of open air exercise. So great is the 
influence of the mind upon the body, that Jaundice, 
Erysipelas, and Apoplexy have been induced by a fit of an- 
ger. 

Inflammation of the liver may be caused by exposure 
to cold, wet weather, and also by injuries. The symp- 
toms of inflammation are — pain, acute or dull, and 
tenderness in the region of the liver ; pain in the right 
shoulder, sometimes in the left ; enlargement of the organ ; 
sometimes cough; intestinal disorder; jaundiced hue, 
and depression of spirits. It may be complicated with 
Dyspepsia, Dysentery, Colic, etc. ; and may be followed 
by abscess, opening externally, or into the peritoneum — 
lining of the bowels, — or into the pleura, lungs or stom- 
ach ; or there may ensue Dropsy, Cirrhosis, Jaundice, En- 
largement or Induration. The chronic form of the dis- 
ease is often insidious. 

No organ is so susceptible of changes in size and form 
as the liver. It sometimes becomes very greatly enlarged, 
and in other cases its proportions are much diminished. 
Cirrhosis is a granular degeneration of the liver, which, 
when fully developed, always proves fatal. It is the 
same destructive process we call "Bright's Disease," 
when occurring in the kidneys. The symptoms are de- 
rangement of the functions of the liver, yellowness of the 



THE LIVER. 99 

skin, dropsy of the abdomen, and dropsical swelling of 
the extremities, and diminished size of the liver. This, 
form of the disease is by no means uncommon. 

In Consumption, the liver becomes fatty, and often 
enlarged. 

The liver is liable to venous congestion, in conse- 
quence of the interruption of the passage of the blood, 
which occurs in certain affections of the heart, and the 
congestion may be followed by enlargement of the liver, 
by Dropsy, etc. It is also liable to bilious congestion 
from obstruction of the gall-ducts or little canals that 
convey the bile from the gall-bladder into the alimentary 
canal or intestines. This condition may also lead to en- 
largement, to Dropsy, and to emaciation. The symptoms 
of congestion are languor, and drowsiness, and may be 
followed by Cholera-morbus, Diarrhoea, hemorrhoids, 
Piles, or Colic. The liver may be the seat of tubercles, 
abscess or Cancer. 

Excessive secretion of bile may be due to any cause 
which excites the liver. Deficient secretion, shown by 
clay-colored stools, may be followed by Jaundice, Diarrhoea, 
or Dysentery. 

Biliary Calculi, or Gall stones, may number from one, 
to thousands, — from the size of the gall-bladder, down to 
that of a millet-seed. The symptoms are severe pain, in 
paroxysms, shooting from the liver to the back, vomit- 
ing, and faintness. This condition may be followed by 
inflammation, ulceration, perforation, enlargement of the 
liver, Jaundice and indigestion. 

Jaundice is due to excessive production of bile, to ob- 



100 ATBR'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

struction, or to deficiency of elimination from the blood. 
The symptoms are those of liver complaints in all forms, 
then yellowness of surface — first in the eyes and face, 
urine, orange color or dark; perspiration leaves a yellow 
stain. This affection may be followed by inflammation 
or organic disease of the liver, and may be complicated 
with apoplectic symptoms, from bile in the brain. 

Diseases of the lungs, and also of the heart, may be in- 
duced by liver complaints. Thes organs are seldom or 
never affected from any cause, without the occurrence 
sooner or later, in the progress of the malady of some de- 
rangement of the liver. In all organic ailments there 
are complications, more or less extensive. The organ- 
ism is so intimately related, that it is impossible for one 
organ to suffer alone, and hence the nerves often indi- 
cate suffering in regions remote from the seat of the pri- 
mary affection. 

Biliousness, Dyspepsia, Neuralgia, and " Nervousness' ' 
certainly cause most of the suffering we experience from 
chronic disorders, and these conditions are more frequently 
induced by faulty habits, than by all other causes. 



Best Prescriptions. 

For Torpidity of the Liver. 

3 [208] 

Leptandrin, five grains; Podophyllin, two grains; 
Dover's Powders, thirty grains; Sulph. Quinia, one 
drachm; Capsicum, thirty grains; Ginger, one drachm. 
Mix. Make thirty powders. A powder from three to 
five times daily. 



THE LIVER. 101 

Constipation. 

Constipation is due to various causes, which should be 
considered in selection of the remedy. It may result 
from organic disease, by the drain upon the blood and 
vital force ; may be due to diet ; lack of muscular exer- 
cise ; impoverished blood ; absorbing mental occupation ; 
deficient bile, and from dyspepsia. 



B [213] 

When there is Constipation, with palpitation of the 
heart : — 

Fid. Ext. Cascarae Sagradae ; Fluid Ext. Berberis 
Aquifolium; Elixir Simplex, of each, one ounce; Tinct. 
Nucis Vomicae, twenty-four drops; Tinct. Digitalis, one 
drachm. Mix. A teaspoonful three times daily. 

A Good Liver-Powder. 

3 [214] 

Podophyllin, one drachm; Leptandrin, two drachms; 
Pulv. Ginger, one drachm. Mix. Two grains in cap- 
sule or wafer, once, twice or three times a week, on re- 
tiring. There is no better preparation for torpidity of 
the liver. 



For the Same. 

B [215] 

Hydrarg. Sub-Mur., six grains; make three powders. 
Take one powder, and if needful, repeat the dose in 
three hours. Promptly corrects a bilious condition, but 
as it is a mercurial powder, no acid of any kind should 
be used for a day or two after taking it. Preference is 
given to ^ 214. 

For Chronic Constipation. 
3 [216] 
Fluid Extract Cascarae Sagradae ; Fluid Extract Tarax- 



102 AYE IPS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

acum; Tinct. Rhei Simp., of each, one ounce; Comp. 
Tinct. Cardamom, two drachms. Mix. One teaspoon- 
ful night and morning. 



9 [217] 

Leptandrin, thirty grains; Podophyllin, ten grains; 
Pulv. Capsicum, ten grains; Ext. Nux Vomica, one 
grain; Quinia Sulph., twelve grains. Mix. Make forty 
pills. One pill once daily. 

B [218] 

Rhei Dulcis, four ounces ; Bi-carb Sodae, two drachms. 
Mix. From a teaspoonful to a tablespoonful daily. 



An Aperient. 

AV P19] 

Silk-weed root, half ounce ; Orange-peel, three 
drachms; Whiskey, one pint. Mix. One or two tea- 
spoonfuls once daily. An over-dose proves emetic and 
laxative. 



B [220] 

Fluid Ext. Cascarae Sagradae, one ounce; Tinct. Nux 
Vomica, two drachms ; Tinct. Belladonna, one drachm; 
Glycerine, one ounce. Mix. A teaspoonful at night 
or morning. 



3 [221] 

Fluid Extract Taraxacum — Dandelion — is often used 
as a substitute for mercurials in torpidity of the liver. 
Dose, twenty to sixty drops. 



A Good Cathartic Pill. 
B P22] 
Podophyllin, eight grains ; Ext. Hyoscyami, two 



THE LIVER. 103 

grains; Ext. Nucis Vomicae, one grain. Mix. Make 
sixteen pills. One pill will generally prove a brisk ca- 
thartic. Its action is very gentle. 



3 [223] 

The Fluid Extract Cascarae Sagradae and Tinct. Iodine, 
equal parts, painted over the region of the liver, once 
daily, for a few times, moves the bowels and corrects 
even habitual constipation. The Cascarae is an excellent 
remedy in Dyspepsia. 



B [224] 
Fiuid Ext. Cascarae Sagradae, two drachms ; Fluid Ext. 
Berberis Aquifolium, half ounce ; Syrup Pruni Vir- 
giniana, one ounce; Acidi Hydrocyan., dil., one drachm; 
Morphiae Sulph., one grain. Mix. Teaspoonful twice 
daily. 



B [225] 

Fiuid Ext. Cascarae Sagradae; Syrup Sarsaparilla 
Comp. ; Glycerine ; of each one ounce. Mix. Tea- 
spoonful three times a day. Excellent for habitual 
constipation. 



Constipation with Uterine Difficulty. 

3 [226] 

Fiuid Ext. Cascarae Sagradae, eight ounces ; Fluid Ext. 
Ergotae, eight ounces; Potassii Bromidi, four ounces; 
Fid. Ext. Belladonnae, one ounce ; Fid. Ext. Nux Vom- 
ica, one and half drachm ; Aqua Camphorae, sufficient to 
make thirty-two ounces. Mix. Teaspoonful in water 
after meals. 



B [228] 

Ferri Carb "Vallet's ;" Quinia Sulph., of each, half 



104 AYE 72' S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

drachm; Ext. Nux Vomica, five grains; Ext. Colocy. 
Comp., one scruple; Ext. Gentian ae, half drachm. Mix. 
Make thirty pills. One pill half hour after each meal. 



$ [229] 

Fluid Ext. Cascarse Sagradse; Fluid Ext. Berberis 
Aquifolium ; Simple Elixir, of each, one ounce ; Tinct. 
Nux Vomica, twenty-four drops; Tinct. Digitalis, one 
drachm. Mix. A teaspoonful three times a day. 



% [230] 

Fid. Ext. Cascarse Sagradse, one ounce; Fid. Ext. 
Berberis Aquifolium, half ounce; Syrup Pruni Virgin- 
iana, one and half ounces; Fid. Ext. Hyoscyami, half 
drachm. Mix. Teaspoonful from one to three times 
a day. 




DISEASES OF THE DIGESTIVE 
SYSTEM. 

— i-r^M — 

Dyspepsia and its Train of Symptoms. 

£pg>HE general disease is complex, and the coinplica- 
lK@j) tions are many. These frequently imitate other 
diseases widely different in their nature ; indeed 
it is not unusual for the dyspeptic sufferer to 
fancy himself the victim of nearly every disease known to 
man. In the train of evils, all the organs of digestion 
become impaired, and the difficulty is soon shared by 
other organs. The functions of the parts within the 
mouth become disordered; the secretions become de- 
praved. With the state of the mouth, that of the skin 
and of the secretions of the entire course of the aliment- 
ary canal, the liver, pancreas, etc., are all morbidly af- 
fected. Digestion is variously deranged. As co-existent 
or subsequent links in this chain of sj'mpathies, the func- 
tions of the brain, heart, lungs, stomach, kidneys and 
other organs become affected. The muscular system and 
the senses also suffer, indifferent instances, and nutrition, 
absorption and secretion are impaired. 

(105) 



106 AYEIVS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

The acute stage of Dyspepsia is the usual result of 
sedentary habits and neglect of open air exercise. It 
most frequently attacks persons whose avocations confine 
them in constrained positions, especially in illy-ventilated 
workshops ; and it is also due to 'anxiety, indolence, and 
eating improper food, or eating in haste. It comes on 
insidiously, and often first attracts attention by the sud- 
denness and severity of some of its complications. It is 
early and principally distinguished by weakness, tremor, 
headache, vertigo, fluttering of the heart, faintness, agita- 
tion, weariness and loss of flesh. The countenance is 
rather pale and thin, the lips are pale, and with the chin, 
frequently tremulous, especially on speaking. The tongue 
may be loaded, or nearly clear, while its edges are red, or 
it may be smooth, swollen, and formed into deep plaits, 
and marked by pressure against the teeth, the inside of 
the cheeks being also impressed in the same way. 

There is a tendency to perspiration on slight exertion, 
or surprise, and sometimes at night or early in the morn- 
ing. The hands and feet are apt to become very cold, 
and the nails of a lilac hue. The patient is often affected 
with great tremor, noticeable on holding out the hand, or 
in carrying a cup to the mouth, or on attempting to stand 
erect, or walk, or on being fatigued or hurried. There is 
early and constant loss of flesh, a great inclination to 
sleep, but sometimes great restlessness and wakefulness, 
sometimes delirium, despondency, loss of memory and 
absence of mind. There are also other symptoms less 
constant, but diversified, and of these, one sometimes 
predominates so much over the rest, as to engross the 



DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. 107 

attention of the patient, and sometimes of the physician, 
too exclusively, and the symptom is very liable to be 
treated as the disease. 

Among these complications are headache, vertigo, 
stupor, a form of epilepsy, palpitation, irregularity 
of the pulse, hiccough, convulsive affections, and pain 
in the limbs. It embraces many diseases in one. It 
is sometimes better and sometimes worse, changes chiefly 
induced by prudence, or by bodily fatigue, mental agita- 
tion, errors in diet, etc. In the protracted form, the 
symptoms stated are generally less observed, but are 
never wholly absent. The countenance is sallow, and 
the patient is incapable of performing any laborious em- 
ployment, and is low spirited and listless ; the appetite is 
sometimes impaired, and sometimes craving. This form 
of Dyspepsia is often complicated with boils, erysipelas, 
purpura, hemorrhages, disease of the eyes, decay of the 
teeth, and throat and skin diseases. There is at times, 
sinking at the pit of the stomach, with a sensation of 
heat, or fullness of that organ, heart-burn, acidity, dis- 
tention, nausea, sometimes water-brash, and rejection of 
food. Of course nutrition is defective, and hence there 
cannot be healthy growth of the body. 



Anaemia or Chlorosis— "Consumption 
of the Blood." 

This morbid condition, which may follow the protracted- 
form of Dyspepsia, is an impoverished state of the blood, 
and is found in youth, middle life, and old age, in both 



108 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

sexes. In women, the ailment is known as chlorosis. 
The condition is marked by pallor, feeble circulation, 
palpitation, and debility, and is often complicated with 
Hysteria, Dropsy, and a low grade of chronic inflamma- 
tion. 

Chlorosis may result from sedentary habits, mental 
anxiety, fatigue, loss of rest, or poor living. 

The early stage of the disease is denoted by paleness 
of the complexion, and of the lips, puffiness of the eye-lids, 
pallor of the general surface, an opaque, white, tumid 
and flabby state of the skin, and tendency to dropsy of 
the lower portions of the limbs, and loss of flesh. The 
patient is languid, listless, sedentary, indisposed for ex- 
ertion, easily overcome by exercise, nervous, despondent, 
drowsy, dizzy, faint and breathless ; there is often severe 
headache, and the memory is impaired; in some cases 
there is pain in one or both sides, cough, difficult breath- 
ing, irregular action of the heart, or fainting. The ap- 
petite is often impaired, and there is a craving for articles 
unfit for food ; there occurs also, constipation or diarrhoea. 

In the chronic stage, all the symptoms are magnified. 
There is swelling of the feet, and the patient is unable to 
sustain any fatigue; the difficulty of breathing is in- 
creased; the pulse is often 100 beats per minute, and 
easily accelerated, even by mental emotions. Later, all 
the symptoms assume a more aggravated character; the 
limbs become dropsical; the sufferer can scarcely bear the 
most ordinary occurrences of life, and perhaps remains at 
all times in bed. There is intolerance of light and sound; 
perhaps some spasmodic or hysteric affection, hurried or 



DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. 109 

suspended respiration, or long fits of coughing. Some of 
these symptoms are liable to be greatly aggravated, and 
to assume the form of serious local diseases, and often 
the patient is said to have a heart, lung or kidney dis- 
ease, when neither exists, and the entire catalogue of 
horrors is solely due to the impoverished condition of 
blood, from impairment of the digestive functions, which 
rational medical treatment, and favorable conditions gen- 
erally within the power of the patient to control, would 
surely have prevented. In this ailment, the blood is 
watery — almost colorless. It is a condition in which the 
brain ultimately becomes involved, and sudden death 
ensues. 

As apparently hopeless as is this deplorable condition, 
it often yields to proper medication, if measures are taken 
before the vital organs have succumbed to its influence. 

The causes of the disease are starvation — either from 
ignorance of what and how to eat, or inability to obtain 
food, and want of open air exercise, either from indo- 
lence or adverse conditions. We find the disease among 
all classes of persons. 

Proper cooking lends a real assistance to the opera- 
tions of digestion. In disease, a cure depends largely 
upon the diet of the patient. Undue excess of albumen, 
oil or starch in diet, causes a liability to gouty, bilious 
and rheumatic affections ; while therefore in these ail- 
ments such foods would be unsuitable, they are required 
in Consumption and a serous or watery condition of the 
blood. Abstinence from fresh vegetables and fruits de- 
velops scurvy, and a deficiency of fatty material causes 
scrofulous diseases. 



110 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Food typically perfect, is supplied by nature to the 
young of various animals. Milk and eggs are perfect 
iood. Milk contains nine parts in ten, of water. It is not 
the most suitable food in adult life, as it does not con- 
tain in sufficient quantity those phosphorized compounds 
which are needful for the repair of the waste of the tis- 
sues of the brain and nervous system, which in this 
stage of being, is far more active than in infancy and 
youth. Bread made of wheat flour, best meets the re- 
quirements of adults. It possesses both the respiratory 
and nutritive elements. But as bread alone is wanting 
in starch, man provides for the deficiency by an equiva- 
lent in butter, which possesses a very high heating 
power. 

The English word "lady "means literally a "bread- 
maker." It is to be feared that in the original signifi- 
cance, the term is sometimes misapplied, for it is believed 
there are a good many ladies to whom the art of bread- 
making is a profound mystery ; but if all ladies realized 
what a wonderful pacificator in family life, good bread re- 
ally is, and what a saving of "broils " and " stews " there 
would be, if bread were never a compound of putty and 
lead, but the genuine article, bread-making would go 
down to posterity as one of the fine arts. 

An eminent write* sagely says, "It is preposterous to 
be minute in what we swallow by grains and scruples, 
while we are incautious in what we swallow by ounces or 
pounds." A patient may be ever so skilfully treated by 
his physician, and yet lose all benefit, by ignorance in re- 
gard to his diet. Nutritive substances nourish the body, 



DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. Ill 

"but an article may be nutritious and yet difficult of diges- 
tion. The digestibility of food is influenced by the 
amount taken, its texture and consistency ; and this re- 
lates especially to the manner of cooking; for example — 
the white of an egg, representing soluble albumen, if 
taken into the stomach fasting, will disappear in an hour, 
hut if several be taken, they will not disappear for three 
or four hours. We may err in taking too little food, as 
well as in taking too much, thus diminishing the 
strength, and increasing the liability to disease, but this 
error seldom occurs. Habit has an influence upon the 
appetite, and persons often eat to excess merely from 
custom. Under ordinary circumstances, there should be 
a due admixture of animal and vegetable food. Animal 
food produces a considerable degree of excitement, heat 
and irritation, during the digestive process, and hence 
people of tropical countries subsist mostly upon vegeta- 
bles and fruits, while people who live in cold climates re- 
quire fatty food. The dietetic changes we make between 
winter and summer, are based on the principle of using 
more combustible food for the former, than for the latter 
season ; and since the heat-producing effects of food de- 
pend upon the quantity of oxidizable hydrogen it con- 
tains, the winter diet has more of that element than 
that of the summer. If there be abstinence from food, 
as the introduction of air by breathing constantly goes on, 
the body itself must undergo oxidation, lose weight and 
become emaciated. By such abstinence, the temperature 
of the body continues to diminish, and the person dies of 
cold. The body loses 39 J^ per cent of its weight, before 
death by starvation occurs. 



112 AYE TVS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Vegetable diet, compared with animal food, requires a 
greater bulk and quantity to supply an equal proportion 
of nourishment, takes a longer time for digestion, but is 
less stimulating and heating. Persons bear hunger bet- 
ter than thirst. The effects of fluids on the body, vary 
according to their temperature, volume and time when 
taken. A large quantity of any liquid is unfavorable to 
digestion. 

For the perfect oxidation of the different elements of 
food, very different quantities of oxygen are required; 
thus, for the oxidation of 100 parts of fat, it would re- 
quire 292 of oxygen; for that of starch 119; for that of 
muscle, or lean meat 147 ; so that persons who eat fats 
require double the amount of out-door exercise, than do 
those who use other foods. It is for this reason, that men 
who labor in the open air, require a different diet from 
that of those persons who pursue sedentary vocations. 
The amount of fats in the human system varies at differ- 
ent periods of life, being in greater proportion in child- 
hood and in middle life, than in advanced age. They di- 
minish after continued muscular exertion, and also by 
long exposure to cold. Though the amount of fat in the 
body varies with the nature of the food, it cannot be in- 
creased, in a state of health, beyond a certain point. 

The more patent medicines taken into the stomach for 
the correction of disorders of the digestive system, the 
more the powers of life are weakened. Morbid condi- 
tions are thus established, and finally the patient comes 
to regard medicinal agents as necessary to his comfort as 
food and air. I will venture to say that in the homes of 



DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. 113 

the great majority of the people of this country — the 
paradise of patent medicine venders — there are to be found 
pill boxes and bitters bottles, etc. as carefully stored up, as 
family provisions, in readiness to repel the coming attacks 
of Dyspepsia and Liver complaint. Exercise in the pure 
air, bathing, sleep, tranquillity of mind, prudence at table,, 
and strict temperance in all things will prevent the class; 
of diseases for the correction of which the prescriptions 
for Dyspepsia, already given, are intended. Reference is 
also made to " Tonic Treatment for Consumption*" 



Best Prescriptions. 



Dyspepsia. 

R [200] 

Fluid Ext. Cascarae Sagradse, one ounce ; Ext. Malt, 
two ounces ; Fid. Ext. Berberis Aquif olium, one ounce ; 
Acid Hydrocyanic, dil., half drachm. Mix. A teaspoon- 
ful directly after meals, or even four times daily, if there 
is pain, or belching of gas f^om the stomach. 



Carminative. 

R [201] 

Co. Tinct. Cardamom, Tinct. Anise, Tinct. Caraway, 
Tinct. Coriander Sem., of each one and half ounces; 
Tinct. Capsicum, half ounce. Mix. A teaspoonful in a 
little water, whenever required. 



Anti-Dyspeptic Powder. 
3 T202] 

Sub-nit. Bismuth, two hundred grains ; White Sugar, 

8 



114 AYHR'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

one hundred grains; Lactate Soda, twenty grains; Nux 
Vomica Pulv., ten grains. Mix. Dose, three to five 
grains three times daily, just before meals. 



For Acidity of the Stomach. 

3 [203] 

Sub-nit. Bismuth, six grains; Bicarb Soda, six grains; 
Pulv. Capsicum, one grain. Mix. This quantity may 
be taken twice daily, if necessary. 



For Dyspepsia. 

^ [204] 

Fluid Ext. Black Alder, two drachms; Fluid Ext. 
Golden Seal, one drachm ; Aqua, one pint. Mix. Two 
tablespoonfuls three times daily. 



I* [205] 
Nitro-Muriatic Acid, dil., two drachms; Sweet Spirits 
Nitre, two drachms; Syrup, half ounce; Aqua, seven 
and half ounces. Mix. Two tablespoonfuls three times 
daily, in torpidity of the liver. 



Anti-Dyspeptic Cordial. 

^ [206] 

Coriander Sem., two drachms; Capsicum, Anise, Car- 
away, Cardamom, of each, one and half drachms; Coch- 
ineal, half drachm; Alcohol, twenty ounces. Mix. 
Macerate, filter and add, Aqua, forty ounces; Syrup 
Auranti Cort, eight ounces. Dose, one or two teaspoon- 
f uls half hour after eating. 



3 [207] 

Sub-nit. Bismuth, one drachm; Co. Tragacanth Pulv., 
two drachms ; Co. Tinct. Cardamom, half ounce ; Tinct. 
Ginger, half ounce; Spearmint Water, eight ounces. 
Mix. Two tablespoonfuls twice daily. 



DIGESTIVE SYSTEM. 115 

Tonic. 

B [209] 

Pepsin, two and half grains; Bismuth Sub-nit., two 
and half grains; Strychnia, one-sixtieth grain. Mix. 
One pill of above once daily. 



$ [210] 

Lime Juice and Pepsin combined, are excellent for in- 
digestion. Especially useful in derangement of the 
stomach caused by the abuse of alcohol. 

Willow Charcoal is an excellent remedy for flatulence, 
palpitation, constipation, nausea, fetid breath, etc. 
Taken in doses of six to twelve grains immediately 
after meals. 



3 [211] 

Celery, Coca, Kola and Viburnum, under the name of 
Celerina, is excellent for Dyspepsia. It is a nerve tonic, 
stimulant and anti-spasmodic, hence its range of useful- 
ness is large. 



Hydrochloric Acid for Dyspepsia. 

3 [212] 

In the greatej number of cases, it is the Hydrochloric 
Acid of the gastric juice, says the Medical World, and not 
the Pepsin which is deficient and required, the dose 
being eight to ten drops of the diluted acid, in a glass of 
water after each meal. 



For Dyspepsia. 

^ [227] 

Lacto-peptine ; sub-nit. Bismuth; Sub. Carb-Sodae, of 
each, three grains. Mix. This dose to be taken after 
each meal. 



RHEUMATISM. 

— •~!-Si~« — 

(SppHIS most distressing affection, in its acute or pri- 
ll^5j) mai T stage, often begins in a limited and compar- 
atively unimportant part of the system; from 
thence, in grave cases, it travels, by successive 
migrations, from joint to joint, and from limb to limb, till 
it has reached nearly all the great articulations of the 
body. It also attacks the organs of sense, and the inter- 
nal organs. During the course of these migrations, it is 
not possible to foretell at any stage, what part will next 
be invaded by the disease, and in many cases it does not 
terminate until it has laid the foundation of serious or- 
ganic derangements, especially of the heart. 

Acute Rheumatism usually arises from exposure to wet 
and cold. It affects the young, the athletic, and the 
male sex principally. Chronic Rheumatism is more fre- 
quent with women, the old and infirm, and it frequently 
follows the acute form of the disease. The acute stage is 
denoted by a painful affection of several, or most of the 
limbs and large joints, accompanied by great tenderness, 
and a slight degree of swelling and of redness. The 
(116) 



RHEUMATISM. 117 

joints and muscles are successively affected. The pain 
is comparatively slight during a state of rest, but be- 
comes excruciating on muscular motions or effort. The 
ailment is also marked by an expression of great pain, 
with excessive perspiration on the forehead, and a loaded 
and moist state of the tongue. The patient generally lies 
on his back, and avoids every motion of the body or 
limbs ; or if he does move, he experiences an aggravation 
of acute pain, cries out sometimes in Chinese, and gives 
a prompt check to the muscular effort. There is no lan- 
guor or debility, or disturbance of the mental faculties. 
The general surface is covered with perspiration, which 
is usually acid. The skin is warm, pale, and a peculiar 
odor is exhaled therefrom. The pulse is frequent, strong 
and full ; the appetite is but little impaired, and digestion 
is fair. The pains, which are scarcely ever entirely ab- 
sent, are generally worse at night. 

The head, pleura, lungs, heart, liver, kidneys, stomach 
and other internal organs may be affected by this dis- 
tressing ailment. 

Rheumatism of the heart is of the gravest importance 
and danger. It is believed that heart diseases result from 
at least a third of the cases of acute Rheumatism. Per- 
sons who have suffered from Rheumatism are more liable 
than others, either to an affection of the heart, or of the 
pericardium — the membrane that invests the heart. Acute 
Rheumatism is never a fatal disease while it remains in 
the muscles or joints of the limbs, but it often causes 
death by attacking the vital organs. When confined to 
the joints, it is called articular Rheumatism; when affect- 



118 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH 

ing the muscles, muscular Rheumatism. It is also con 
sidereal according to its grade of excitement, as acute, sub- 
acute and chronic Rheumatism. 

The duration of the disease is uncertain, but by proper 
medical treatment it may generally be promptly arrested. 
In some cases the acute stage continues for several weeks, 
and in others, for months. It not unfrequently exhibits 
alternations of improvement and aggravation, and some- 
times, when everything promises fairly, the disease re. 
sumes its original violence, without any known cause. A 
degree of swelling and soreness may continue for some 
time after the violence of the disease has subsided. 

In the sub-acute stage, there is less pain than in the 
primary form, and is scarcely more than a dull aching or 
soreness of the muscles. When the disease affects the 
muscles of the small of the back, it is called Lumbago. 
Chronic Rheumatism is frequently the gradual effect of 
long exposure to dampness and cold. In this form 
of the disease, the pain is more fixed and less gen- 
eral. There is at all times more or less pain — dull and 
aching — and this is aggravated by damp, chilly weather ; 
but there is no swelling, discoloration nor tenderness 
which marks the acute stage; the limbs gradually lose 
their power, their sensibility, and often their usual size, 
and the patient becomes very lame, sometimes almost 
helpless, or these symptoms may occur in a slight degree 
only. Rheumatic patients can generally foretell a com- 
ing storm, from the effect of the cold, damp winds that 
precede it. When the muscles are affected, they often 
waste or shrink and become shortened. In old cases, 






RHEUMATISM. 119 

there is often stiffness of the joints, and these are greatly 
distorted. This form of the disease may always be re- 
lieved, but cannot, in all cases, be cured. 

A most painful disease similar to, and sometimes mis- 
taken for Acute Rheumatism, attacks the periosteum — the 
covering of the bones. This inflammation is generally 
confined to the long or flat bones — the collar bone, ribs, 
lower bones of the arms, etc. This disease may be due 
to cold and dampness, to the effects of mercury or to de- 
pravity of the blood. 



Best Prescriptions. 

9 [231] 

Aqua Menth. Pep., one and half ounces; Vini Col- 
chici Rad., half ounce; Sulph. Morphiae, one grain; 
Magnesia, one scruple. Mix. One teaspoonf ul three or 
four times daily. 



Lumbago. 

$ [232] 

Quinia Sulph., two drachms; Ext. Colchici Acetatis, 
seven grains; Tinct. Gelseminum, thirty-eight drops. 
Make twenty-four capsules. One every three hours till 
the bowels have been freely moved, or till five have been 
taken. 



Lumbago and Sciatica. 

3 [233] 

Fid. Ext. Pichi, one ounce; Potass, nitrate, one 
drachm ; Simple Elixir, three ounces. Mix. Teaspoon- 
ful once in two hours. 



120 ATEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Rheumatism. 

$ [234] 

Vini Colchici Sem., one ounce; Fid. Ext., Taraxa- 
cum, one ounce. Mix. Dose, half teaspoonful three 
times a day. 



^ [235.] 

The Fluid Extract of Aconite, applied with the Der- 
mic instrument, or even after very vigorous friction 
with flesh brush, will relieve the pain in Rheumatism or 
Neuralgia in 15 minutes, in most all cases. See pre- 
scriptions for external applications, following " Con- 
sumption." 



B [236] 

The Oil of Peppermint painted on the painful part, is 
an excellent anodyne application. 



For Pain in Neuralgia or Rheumatism. 

3 [237] 

Tincture Aconite Rad., and Opium liniment, equal 
parts, will afford relief. Apply as often as needed. 



Excellent Application for the Same. 

3 [238] 

Oil Sassafras, Oil Hemlock, Oil Origanum, Oil Win- 
tergreen, of each, half drachm; Tinct. Guaiac, Tinct. 
Gum Myrrh; Tinct. Colchicum, of each one ounce; 
Tinct. Arnica, five drachms; Gum Camphor, one 
scruple; Chloroform, one drachm; Alcohol, four ounces. 
Mix. Apply two or three times daily with old soft 
linen, or wet the linen and apply, covering with flannel. 



RHEUMATISM. 121 

Another. 

# [239] 

Tinct. Arnica, two ounces; Spirits Camphor, one 
ounce; Tinct. Belladonna, one ounce; Tinct. Cannabis 
Indica, one ounce; Tinct. Aconite; Oil Hemlock; Oil 
Wormwood; Oil Sassafras, of each half ounce; Oil 
Origanum; Oil Tar; Oil Cajeput, of each two drachms; 
Oil Peppermint, one drachm; Chloroform, two drachms; 
Aqua Ammonia, six ounces. Mix. With a flannel wet 
with the liniment, rub the painful part, or put the wet 
flannel on and cover it with thick paper. Gives imme- 
diate relief. 



For Neuralgia or Headache. 

3 [240] 

The following gives immediate relief : Menthol, one 
drachm; dissolve in Bromide of Ethyl, or Alcohol, two 
drachms. Rub on the affected parts, or paint with cam- 
el's-hair brush. The Ethyl evaporates quickly, leaving 
an impalpable powder, causing an agreeable cooling sen- 
sation. If the pain is especially severe, give Chlor- Ano- 
dyne, fifteen drops. Relief will follow in less than ten 
minutes, even in the worst cases. 



For Intercostal Neuralgia, — Affording 
Prompt Relief. 

B [241] 

Menthol, one ounce; Alcohol, one ounce; Oil Cinna- 
mon, or Cloves, thirty drops. Mix. Apply with camel' s- 
hair brush. Relieves in two minutes. 



B [242] 

fealicin is very efficacious in Acute Rheumatism. 
Dose, from two to eight grains three times a day. 



122 AYEIVS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

B [243] 

Acid Salicylicum, sixty grains; Morphige Sulph., two 
grains. Mix. Make 24 pills. Dose, one pill, two or 
three times a day. 



For Rheumatic Headache. 

3 [244] 

Co. pill Colocynth, seven grains; Ext. Colchicum, 
two grains; Oil Caraway, one drop. Mix. Make 
three pills. One to be taken at bed-time. 



$ [245] 

Fluid Extract Black Cohosh is excellent in Rheuma- 
tism. Dose, ten to thirty drops. 



B [246] 

Fluid Ext. Colchicum seeds is alterative, diuretic, and 
cathartic, and is useful in Rheumatism, Gout, etc. Dose, 
three to five drops. 



Excellent in Rheumatism and Cell Dropsy. 

B [247] 

Tinct. Black Cohosh, one ounce; Iodide Potass., two 
drachms; Syrup Ipecac, one ounce; Aqua dest., two 
ounces. Mix. A teaspoonful three or four times a day. 



A Powerful Diaphoretic — Promoter op Per- 
spiration. 

3 [248] 

The Extract of Jaborandi is an excellent remedy in 
Rheumatism, and Syphilitic trouble of long standing. 
One or two pills, three grains each, once or twice daily. 



RHEUMATISM. 123 

3 [249] 

Muriate Ammonium is useful in Chronic Rheumatism, 
also in Bronchitis, Pleuritis (pleurisy), Dysentery, and 
other inflammations of the membranes, after the first 
violence of the disease has abated. Dose, two to five 
two-grain pills, frequently repeated. 



Rheumatism and Malaria. 

B [250] 

Cinchona Sulph., thirty-two grains; Acid Salicylic, 
sixteen grains ; Opium, eight grains ; 01. Res. Capsicum, 
four grains. Mix. Make sixteen pills. One pill, or 
two pills, on days when paroxysms are expected, in 
Ague. 



Rheumatism. 

B 1.251] 

The Syrup Hydriodic Acid given in from one to two 
teaspoonful doses — according to age — in water, every 
two hours, in the acute form of the disease, speedily 
relieves pain, reduces the swelling, and prevents heart 
complications. 



DISEASES OF THE GENITO- 
URINARY SYSTEM. 



Diseases of the Kidneys. 

(M)EW diseases are more frequent, more practically 
important, more destructive to the vital powers, 
QY or more distressing, than those of the kidneys, 
occurring either as the causes or the effects of 
other maladies. Functional derangement of the organ 
causes organic diseases, and often gives rise to disorder 
of the brain, in consequence of blood-poisoning — some- 
times causing Paralysis, Dropsy, Hemorrhage, etc. It 
always impairs the powers of the constitution and short- 
ens life. 

Kidney disease may be the effect of Rheumatism, Gout, 
Dyspepsia, and occasionally of Scarlatina. Not only do 
constitutional diseases of various kinds give rise to disor- 
ders of the kidneys, but these may originate in conse- 
quence of external violence— a fall upon the back, a blow, 
overexercise from riding, lifting, straining, exposure to 
inclement weather, to sexual imprudences, to certain con- 
tagious diseases, and to the action of spirituous liauors, 
(124) 



KIBNE Y DISEASES. 125 

and of certain medicines. Derangement of the stomach 
leads to derangement of the functions of the kidneys, 
and to the deposit of gravel and various calculi or stone, 
and their train of painful and dangerous effects. In 
other cases, the function of the kidneys becomes de- 
ranged by torpidity of the liver, and also independently 
of previous derangement of other organs, or of organic 
change in the kidney itself, probably from hereditary pre- 
disposition. 

All diseases, the periods of digestion, each kind of diet 
and beverage — even of water, each change of temperature 
and moisture of the atmosphere has an effect upon the 
kidneys ; therefore it can no longer be a matter of sur- 
prise that kidney diseases are so prevalent. A very 
large per cent of the number of deaths in every commu- 
nity, occur from this class of diseases; and many per- 
sons are sufferers from these ailments who have not even 
a suspicion of the cause or nature of their affliction. 
Wherever liver difficulties are most frequent, wherever 
water is impure or chemically unfit for drinking, there 
kidney complaints are most prevalent. 

A disease may be limited to one kidney, but generally 
extends to both. Ailments of this class consist of in- 
flammation, enlargement, softening, induration, harden- 
ing, suppression of urine, gravel, calculus, granulation, 
diabetes, morbid secretions, and diseases of other parts 
with which the kidneys are in direct relation. 

One of the most terrible maladies is Bright's disease, 
or granular degeneration, or destruction of the organs. 
It is of frequent occurrence, and occupies a prominent 



126 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

position in the catalogue of human ills. The disease is 
insidious, and advances gradually. It is attended with 
irritation of the parts, which is marked by the excretion 
of blood, or of its albuminous element. It tends to im- 
poverish the blood, in a great degree. The sufferer loses 
weight, and becomes more or less emaciated and weak ; 
finally the disease affects the brain, and engenders in the 
constitution an infirmity or susceptibility to diseases 
generally, and especially to Dropsy, and internal in- 
flammations. Diabetes is generally hereditary, and is 
highly insidious. Among its symptoms are debility, 
emaciation and dropsy. 

In any form of Kidney disease, the more noticeable 
symptoms are local tenderness upon pressure, keen lan- 
cinating pain upon quick motion, or a false step or jar, 
acute or dull pain in the loins, weakness of the limbs, a 
feeling of weariness without exertion, and sometimes a 
disagreeable sensation in the back of the head. All of 
these symptoms may not be present in the same case, but 
some of them always are, in any disease of the kidneys. 

The secretion of the kidneys will almost invariably de- 
termine the condition of the organs. 

The urine in most healthy persons is of a light yellow- 
ish color, and transparent. In disease, it may be increased 
or diminished in quantity, and changed in appearance 
and qualities. It is temporarily increased by the effect 
of obstructed perspiration by cold, by certain passions, 
by hysteria, and by the use of diuretics, and is perma- 
nently increased in that terrible disease — Diabetes. When 
the quantity is increased, its appearance is usually pale and 



KIBNE Y DISEASES. 127 

limpid. It is diminished in quantity, and high-colored, in 
fevers, inflammations, and dropsical affections, and may 
have a similar appearance in healthy persons who drink 
little, or perspire freely, or who are under the influence 
of opiates, and certain other drugs. 

When the discharge of urine fails wholly or in part, it 
is either not secreted by the kidneys, or is retained in the 
bladder. When it fails, for successive days, it is a dan- 
gerous symptom, and is liable to be attended with a dis- 
ease of the brain. When there is retention in the bladder, 
it may be due to paralysis of that organ, but is more com- 
monly due to some mechanical impediment, such as in- 
flammation of the neck of the bladder, stricture of the 
urethra, — or canal leading from the body, — to gravel, en- 
largement of the prostate gland, and to falling or dis- 
placement of the womb, tumors in adjacent organs, etc. 
In such cases, there is uneasiness and pain, with frequent 
but vain attempts to void urine. 

When the discharge is difficult, painful and insufficient 
(dysury or strangury), there is usually inflammation about 
the neck of the bladder, which may arise from gravel, or 
stricture, or from an affection of neighboring organs, as 
in dysentery, hysteria, and sudden suppression of the 
menses. Some medicines, as Cantharides — Spanish flies 
— and turpentine, cause the difficulty. 

An involuntary discharge of urine may be habitual or 
constant, in paralysis of the neck of the bladder, and 
after certain injuries ; or it may be temporary, as in hy- 
steria. In typhoidal fevers, it is a grave symptom. 

When a sediment of solid particles falls as soon as the 



128 AYE IPS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

urine is discharged, it is gravel. When a sediment is de- 
posited after some time standing, of a brick-red color, 
forming a coating to the vessel, it indicates a feverish, or 
inflammatory state. When the urine has an albuminous 
character, so that it coagulates by heat, or by the action 
of strong acids, it is a symptom of Bright' s disease, and 
dropsy frequently ensues. When the urine is excessive, 
and has a sweetish smell, and affords sugar, by evapora- 
tion, the disease is Diabetes. When there is pain and 
tenderness in the back, shooting downward toward the 
thighs, with nausea or vomiting, frequent desire to void 
urine, and numbness of the thighs, there is inflammation 
of the kidneys. When with any of the above symptoms, 
the urine deposits a sand-like sediment, there is gravel 
in the kidneys. 

Inflammation of the kidneys may occur in the sub- 
stance, or the exterior, or interior lining. The symptoms 
of acute inflammation are deep seated pain in the small 
of the back, one side or both, increased by pressure or 
sudden jar; urine scanty, high-colored, or mixed with 
blood, fever, nausea and vomiting. The disease may 
be followed by suppuration or abscess, and may be com- 
plicated with delirium, coma, or convulsions. It is often 
due to gravel or calculus. The symptoms of the chronic- 
stage are similar, but less violent. 

In Bright' s disease, there is a granular deposit in the 
substance of the kidneys, with a shrinking of the healthy 
structure; albumen in the urine, and tendency to Dropsy. 
In the acute form, the symptoms are those of inflamma- 
tion. The quantity of urine is very small. 



KIDNEY DISEASES. 129 

In the chronic form, there is pain in the back, and 
dropsical swelling of the face and limbs. The disease may- 
be complicated with acute inflammations of other parts, 
apoplexy, diarrhoea, disease of the heart, liver, or lungs, 
bronchitis, or chronic rheumatism. Often proves fatal. 

The kidneys are also liable to enlargement, shrinking, 
softening, fatty degeneration, tubercles, and cancer. 

There are few ailments which cause such decrepitude, 
infirmity, helplessness and semblance of premature age, 
or that work greater injury to the powers of life, than do> 
these. Men and women in the prime of life, the old and 
the young, are all susceptible to these afflictions. The 
mental powers suffer, the spirits become depressed, 
the health utterly ruined, and early death ensues — all 
from causes that at first were seemingly unimportant and 
generally amenable to remedial influences. In treatment, 
life is often sacrificed to ignorance and charlatanry. Re- 
peated disappointment often leads the afflicted to sources 
where injury, rather than benefit is found. It is very 
dangerous to use patent medicines generally, for such 
complaints. It is always better to do nothing, than to 
do something wrong. So numerous, and so widely dif- 
ferent in character, hence in requirements in relation to 
remedies, are such complaints, that the patient who re- 
sorts to patent nostrums, does so at the peril of his 
life. There can be no doubt that a large per cent of such 
cases are rendered hopeless and early fatal by the use of 
patent nostrums and empirical treatment. 



130 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Inflammation of the Bladder-Cystitis. 

In the acute form, the symptoms are — great pain, 
fever, burning sensation, extending to the neighboring 
parts, difficulty of passing urine, vomiting, and sometimes 
extreme prostration, which may be followed by suppur- 
ation and gangrene. 

In the chronic stage, or catarrh of the bladder, the 
symptoms are less severe. There is frequent desire to 
void urine, excessive mucous discharges in the urine, 
sometimes blood, or crystals of phosphates. 



Diseases of the Prostate Gland. 

The symptoms of inflammation are heavy, pulsative, or 
burning pain of the part, and tenderness to the touch. 
The affection may be complicated with inflammation of 
the bladder, and followed by abscess, opening into that 
organ or into the rectum. 

Enlargement of the gland is common in old age. The 
symptoms are frequent and difficult urination, etc. It 
may be complicated with thickening, contraction and in- 
flammation of the coats of the bladder. 

Neuralgia of the kidneys is denoted by pains in the 
loins, which are usually paroxysmal. Neuralgia may 
also affect the bladder. It is sometimes caused by the 
passage of calculus through the ureters — the little ca- 
nals which convey urine from the kidneys to the bladder. 
The symptoms are extreme pain in the loins, shooting to 
the groin, thigh or abdomen. The pain may occur in 
paroxysms. 



KIDNEY DISEASES. 131 

In an organic disease of the bladder or kidneys, there 
may be spasms of the bladder, with violent pain, a sense 
of constriction, cold perspiration and feeble pulse. 

Paralysis of the Bladder is due to debilitating causes, 
low fevers, overdistention, and hysteria. 

Strangury, or constant desire to pass urine, is attended 
with burning or cutting pains in the neck of the bladder, 
and along the urethra. 

In excessive urinary secretion, the urine is very limpid, 
there is thirst, loss of flesh, and debility. In Diabetes 
there is excessive discharge of urine. The symptoms are 
— urine, pale yellow, with odor of new-mown hay, intense 
thirst and emaciation ; may be followed by tubercles in 
the lungs, or Bright's disease. Suppression of the urine 
may attend diarrhoea, dropsy or hemorrhage. There is 
often chill, nausea, vomiting, stupor, and a urinous odor 
of the body. This disorder attends inflammation of the 
kidneys, certain fevers, Bright's disease, hysteria, gravel, 
etc. 

Gravel is a deposition of insoluble matter from the 
urine, in powder, crystalline particles, or solid masses. 
The varieties of gravel are uric acid in reddish crystals, 
which gives that color to the urine; phosphates of mag- 
nesia and ammonia, sometimes of lime in white fe'tining 
grains ; gray powder or iridescent pellicle over the sur- 
face of the urine left standing. 

This difficulty is usually complicated with Dyspepsia, 
and prostration of the vital powers. When there is ox- 
alic gravel, the urine is usually clear. All forms of gravel 
cause irritation or inflammation of the urinary passages. 



132 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Best Prescriptions. 

Diuretic for Kidney and Urinary Troubles. 

5 [252] 

Fluid Extract BuchuComp , three ounces; Fluid Ext. 
Juniper berries, one and half ounces; Fluid Ext. Cubebs, 
half ounce; Fluid Ext. Spearmint, one ounce; Acetate 
potass (in solution), one ounce. Mix. From twenty to 
thirty drops, in water, twice or three times a day. 



Nocturnal Incontinence of Children. 

3 [253] 

Strychnia, one grain; Pulv. Cantharides, two grains; 
Morphise Sulph., one and half grains ; Ferri Pulv., 
twenty grains. Mix. Make fifty pills. One pill on 
retiring. This with careful attention to the laws of 
health, will cure almost all cases. 






Diuretic, Diaphoretic and Anti-Spasmodic 

3 [254] 

Olei Juniperi, one drachm; Ess. Mentha? Viridisi; 
Sweet Spirits Nitre, of each, one ounce. Mix. Thirty 
drops in water, two or three times daily. 



Diabetes. 

3 [255] 

The Fluid Extract Bugleweed (Ly T copus Virginicus) 
has often cured Diabetes even when all other means had 
failed. Dose, thirty to sixty drops, two or three times 
daily. 



Bright's Disease. 

B [256] 
Fluid Extract Yerba Santa, two ounces; Glycerine, 



KIBNE Y DISEASES. 133 

two ounces ; Syrup Wild Cherry, one ounce. Mix. One 
desert-spoonful three times a day. 



Incontinence of Urine of Children. 

I* [257] 

Tinct. Belladonna, eight drops; Brom. Potass., eighty 
grains; Infusion Digitalis, two ounces; Aqua, sufficient 
to make four ounces. Mix. Dose, a desert-spoonful 
three times a day. 



Acute Inflammation of the Bladder — Cystitis. 

3 [258] 

Salicylate of Sodium, in eight grain doses, every two 
or three hours for a day or two, then three times a day, 
is a very useful remedy. 



Diuretic Mixture for Dropsical Conditions, 
Especially of the Limbs. 

3 [259] 

Co. Spirits of Juniper, one pint; Sulphate Iron, two 
drachms; Acetate Potass., half ounce; Fluid Ext. Digi- 
talis, two drachms ; Syrup Squills, half ounce. Mix. A 
tablespoonful three times a day. In severe cases, the 
patient may also drink a cold infusion of elder root. 
The difficulty is often of malarial origin. 



Diabetes. 

B [260] 

Ergot is especially valuable, causing capillary contrac- 
tion in the kidneys, or nervous centers. Given in doses 
of one or even two drachms, of the Fluid Extract, three 
times daily, causes no inconvenience. 

Valerianate of zinc, and the tincture of Valerian in- 
duce a favorable result if persistently used. See pre- 
scriptions of Nervines, etc. "Nervous System." 



134 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Suppression of Urine. 

B [261] 

Bi-carb. Soda is an excellent remedy in such cases. 
Half teaspoonful in water, every three or four hours, 
will restore the secretion in normal quantity. It is effi- 
cacious even in dropsical swelling of the limbs, convul- 
sions, and impending coma, consequent upon suppression. 



Cystitis, in the Aged. 

B [262] 

Especially useful in prostatic enlargement: Tinct, 
Belladonna (German) ; Tinct. Cantharides, of each, one 
ounce. Mix. Dose, five or ten drops, at 2, 6, and 9 
o'clock P. M. 



For Gravel. 

5 [263] 

The Fluid Extract Gravel Plant is used for Gravel, 
Diabetes, Bright's disease, Dysuria, also in Dropsy, and in 
Rheumatism. The best remedy, perhaps, for Gravel or 
urinary calculi is the Fluid Ext. Hydrangea. It is a 
most potent diuretic, and an active tonic. It is most 
useful in mucous irritation of the bladder in the aged, 
and incontinence of urine in the young. It dissolves 
gravelly deposits in the bladder or kidneys. It will dis- 
solve phosphatic deposits that no other remedy will. 
Dose, half to one teaspoonful two or three times a day. 



Diuretics. 

B [264] 

The Fluid Ext. Dwarf Elder is an excellent diuretic ; 
used in dropsy, inflammation of the bladder, etc. The 
Fluid Ext. Cleavers is used for the same purposes. It is 
similar in effects to Buchu. Dose, thirty to fifty drops. 



KIBNE Y DISEASES. 135 

DlUKETIC. 

S [265] 

The Fluid Extract Collinsonia is a good diuretic, and 
is extensively used in chronic diseases of the urinary or- 
gans — Bright's disease, Diabetes, Gonorrhoea and Gleet. 
Dose, ten to thirty drops, two or three times a day. 

The Fluid Extract Button Snake Root is used for the 
same purposes. Dose, half to one teaspoonful. 



Excellent in Diabetes, etc. 

3 [266] 

The Compound Fluid Extract Buchu is one of the 
best remedies in Diabetes, Gravel, etc. Dose, ten to 
thirty drops in water, two or three times daily. It is 
made of Buchu, Juniper berries, Pareira Brava, Uva 
Ursi, Cubebs, and Nux Vomica. 

The Fluid Extract Spearmint is useful in Gravel and 
suppression of urine. Dose, thirty to sixty drops. 



A Good Remedy in Many Forms of Kidney 
Disease. 

I* [267] 

White Pine Tree Gum, one ounce; Alcohol, six an 1 a 
half ounces; dissolve and add Holland Gin, ten and half 
ounces ; Essence Juniper, two and half drachms. 

White Sugar, one pound; Aqua Pura, six and half 
ounces ; boil to a syrup and add the above ingredients, 
while hot. Strain and add Acet. Potass., half ounce; 
Fluid Extract Buchu, three ounces; Ext. Poke Root, 
one ounce ; Vini Colchicum, two ounces. A teaspoonful 
three or four times a day. 

Diuretic. 

3 [268] 

Fluid Ext. Buchu, half ounce; Acet. Potass., two 



136 AYE ft S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

drachms ; Aqua, eight ounces ; Sweet Spirits Nitre, two 
drachms. Mix. A table spoonful three times daily. 



A Popular Kidney Remedy. 

3 [269] 

Nitrate of Potash, three hundred and twenty grains ; 
Liverwort leaves, one ounce; Aqua, four ounces; Al- 
cohol, two ounces; Glycerine, one and half ounces; 
Essence Wintergreen, forty drops. Infuse the Liverwort 
in one pint hot water ; after two hours strain and filter. 
Dissolve the Nitrate Potash in the liquid; strain and 
filter ; add the other ingredients and add sufficient water 
to make a pint. Dose, a teaspoonful two or three times 
dailv. 



Solitary Vice. 

The subject of the sexual instinct and function em- 
braces matters which it is of the utmost importance that 
all should understand, for of all the varied functions of 
the human organism, none are more intimately connected 
with the sources of thought and feeling, and none so pro- 
foundly affect the tone of moral character, as the sexual. 
When once perversion has been voluntarily fastened upon 
the sexual instinct, it sheds poison over heart and life, 
and falls with a fatal paralysis upon the noblest aims. 
For want of knowledge, multitudes are perishing, soul and 
body. It is time to burst through that artificial bashful- 
ness which has injured the growth and affected the feat- 
ures of genuine purity. Society has suffered enough 
from the spurious modesty which lets fearful forms of 
vice swell to a rank luxuriance, rather than point out 



SOLITARY VICE. 137 

their existence. True modesty, springing from pure 
thoughts, asks for plain words, with definite, undisguised 
meanings. 

The perversions of the sexual instinct are both mental 
and physical ; the former consisting in lascivious reveries, 
polluted fancies, and passional emotions, which constitute 
the staple of the private thoughts and feelings of multi- 
tudes, and which lead to, or attend upon the kindred 
physical perversities that curse the race. 

Among these, at the very front, both in order of time 
and importance, stands the loathsome and destructive 
habit of self-abuse or solitary vice. Usually led to it by 
older companions, long before enlightened reason comes 
to the rescue, the chains of a habit have been forged and 
fastened upon the victim, which in thousands of cases, 
insures life-long slavery, with often hopeless disease. 
The prevalence of this vile habit is absolutely astounding. 
Not one young man in a thousand escapes it. I have 
been consulted in cases almost without number, by those 
upon the brink of ruin, who sought relief from the sad 
consequences of this vice. This solitary but fatal vice, is 
spreading desolation through our schools and families, 
unnoticed and unknown. There is no large town in this 
country, whose bills of mortality, from year to year, are 
not greatly increased by this fearful and wide- wasting 
scourge. It is one of the most common causes of ill- 
health among the young men of this country. I might 
quote the evidence of hundreds of the ablest physicians, 
to the same end — concerning the alarming prevalence of 
the vice, and of its death-dealing character. 



9 

138 AYEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

The physical consequences may occur in various ways 
— in a variety of diseases of the organs themselves, in 
nocturnal and diurnal emissions, and consequent impo- 
tency — a condition of functional weakness that causes in- 
sanity, idiocy, and absolute physical ruin. 

The habit induces constipation, or diarrhoea, inconti- 
nence of urine, Diabetes, Bright' s disease of the kidneys, 
derangement of the liver, palpitation, heart disease, Con- 
sumption, Dyspepsia, Catarrh, sunken eyes, haggard ex- 
pression, despondency, irritation of the spinal cord, 
rheumatic pains in the limbs, weakness and numbness of 
the legs, heat or cold in the lower part of the spine, pain 
or paralysis of the lower extremities, and epileptic fits. 

Those persons in whom the brain and nervous system 
predominate over the muscular and digestive systems, 
usually manifest signs of mental disturbance. The 
thoughts continually revert to the sexual organs; lasciv- 
ious and morbid fancies continually haunt the mind; 
it may be diverted for a short time, to other things, but 
it soon falls back into its accustomed channels, and the 
victim becomes as listless and powerless as before. He 
loses the ability to fix the mind or concentrate his 
thoughts, and has but little self-control in any direction. 
There is dullness of the eye, with no expression of life or 
vivacity; the vision becomes dim and indistinct; the 
hearing dull, and all the senses are blunted; the voice 
loses its manly tones, and becomes feeble, rough, broken 
or squeaking; the countenance presents either a bloated, 
coarse and harsh expression, or it may become thin, an- 
gular, pale, and expressionless; there is roaring in the 



SOLITARY VICE. 139 

ears, with dullness and a disagreeable sensation in the 
upper and back portion of the head. The terrible vice 
is as plainly depicted on his face, form and movements, 
as printed letters upon a page. 

As the difficulty progresses, and the victim awakens to 
a sense of his deplorable condition, he becomes morbid 
and morose, dwelling constantly upon his ruin. Con- 
scieDce goads him, and he resolves to abandon the vice, 
but his resolution soon gives way, and with the constant 
drain upon his system, he becomes weaker in body and 
mind, and falls an easy prey to temptation in other di- 
rections ; he is almost sure to be led into intemperance ; 
for force of character is sooner or later destroyed. 

This entire catalogue of evils is the inevitable result of 
solitary vice. All these consequences do not always oc- 
cur in the same individual, but more or less of them will 
be found in every instance. Some fatal form of heart 
disease is the result in a large per cent of the number of 
confirmed cases. The first and essential condition of a 
cure is abandonment of the habit. The following pre- 
scriptions will then, fully and surely meet every indica- 
tion, and by continuance of the remedies for a reasonable 
time, will positively cure. 



Best Prescriptions. 

Seminal Emissions^ 

B [270] 

Potass. Bromide, half ounce; Fid. Ext. Gelseminum, 
one drachm; Syrup Auranti Cort, one ounce; Aqua 
dest, seven ounces. Mix. One teaspoonful at night or 
noon 3 or both. 



140 AYE&S monitor of health. 

Anothek For the Same. 

3 P71] 

Tinct. Chloride of Iron and Tinct. Nux Vomica: $ 
128 three times a day; with a pill given nightly consist- 
ing of a quarter of a grain Extract Belladonna, and 
three grains of Camphor, is highly efficacious. 



^ [272] 

Tinct. Digitalis one and half drachms; Aromatic 
Spirits Ammonia, two drachms; Aqua dest., sufficient to 
make three ounces. Mix. One teaspoonful three times 
a day. This is also excellent for premature emissions. 



Impotency. 

3 [273] 

Fluid Extract Damianse, three drachms ; Tinct. Nueis 
Vom., thirty drops. Mix. Half teaspoonful three 
times daily. If given in connection with iron, the 
patient will quickly recover. See I£ 123. This is 
commended as most suitable. 



B [274] 

The Compound Syrup Hypophosphites is also an 
excellent remedy; and the Fluid Extract Cannabis 
Indica in from five to ten drop doses twice daily is 
useful. 



Nerve Tonics or Nervines, 3 1? 2, 3, 4, 5, especially, 
are often serviceable. See prescriptions for nervous 
diseases, constipation, etc. 



SOCIAL VICE. 141 

Social Vice, Prostitution. 

Another manifestation of perverted sexuality is in the 
vice of prostitution. Of the prevalence of this, no one 
acquainted with social life in its secret phases, can be 
ignorant. All vices at the beginning are silver tongued, 
but none so impassioned as this. All vices in the end, 
cheat their dupes, but none with such overwhelming dis- 
aster as licentiousness. During the middle ages, Europe 
was one vast brothel, and disease of contamination — 
syphilis — was wide-spread, all over the land, and as a 
consequence of vice and ignorance, the terrible scourge 
not only carried off its thousands, but in a modified form 
was transmitted to posterity for many generations. In 
view of the distressing nature of the malady, so fraught 
with intense suffering from first to last, little wonder that 
the medical profession has given to its consideration so 
much thought and investigation, and so carefully noted 
the best experience of its most successful members. For 
little less than three and a half centuries, Syphilis has 
monopolized a share of medical literature nearly as large 
as that of all other diseases put together ; and yet the 
treatment of the various forms of the terrible malady 
seems to be involved in as much perplexity and dispute, 
with the majority of medical men, as it was a century ago. 

To an observing physician who has seen many cases of 
the advanced stages of the disease, a single glance at the 
face of his patient, and even a cursory examination of 
the physical signs, will usually settle the question of its 
presence, without any information from the sufferer. 



142 AYJEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

This dreadful disease attacks the skin, the mucous mem- 
brane lining the mouth and throat, the fibrous system, 
the periosteum, or covering of the bones, then the bones, 
and finally there appears a tubercular affection, and death 
releases the poor victim from his terrible sufferings. 

The disease is both communicable and hereditary. 
Many persons erroneously suppose that if the primary 
stage was apparently successfully treated, and years have 
since elapsed without any noticeable evidences of the dis- 
ease, that it was entirely eradicated; but this is not al- 
ways, nor generally the fact. I have seen unmistakable 
evidence of the malady in the throats of persons, ten or 
twelve years after the period of contracting the disease, 
although in the interim it was supposed to be cured. 
There can be no doubt the poison may exist in latent 
form in the system for many years, and that under cer- 
tain conditions — the occurrence of some exciting cause, 
perhaps even too obscure for recognition, the secondary 
symptoms may appear, with characteristic virulence. 

In the great cities, Syphilis is fearfully prevalent. It 
is believed that fully twenty per cent of their entire pop- 
ulation is more or less tainted with it, and the greater 
number innocently. It should be stated as a fact not 
generally known, that a person sleeping in a bed where 
a diseased person has slept, much more by joint occu- 
pancy of the bed, by using the same toilet articles, and 
by wearing the infected person's clothing, ma}' take the 
disease. The infant with whom it is hereditary, may 
give it to the nurse. The readiness with which Syphilis 
in infants may be communicated by contact, is not ex- 
ceeded by any other disease. 



SOCIAL VICE. 143 

An eminent medical writer in depicting the horrors 
consequent upon syphilitic contamination, truly says, "If 
any man who inclines to the licentiousness of his nature 
will come with me into any one of our large city hospi- 
tals, he can see women in all stages of putrefaction — liv- 
ing deaths — the sight of which would make him vow, 
then and there, to shun the broad road that leads to de- 
struction; and if this did not have its just effect, in an- 
other ward — in the men there exposed in all hideousness, 
his own life and end would be foreshadowed." All phy- 
sicians who have had practice in city hospitals, have 
seen syphilitic patients with their eyes eaten out, the 
nose rotted away, and the skull decayed so as to expose 
the brain, and corroding ulcers on all parts of the body, 
— disgusting sights that would shock and sicken any man 
to look upon. 



Symptoms of Syphilis or Pox — Its 
Rayages. 

Syphilis is a contagious disease, communicable by inoc- 
ulation, or by contact of surfaces. The symptoms are 
divided into the Primary, or those which appear early 
in the disease, and the Secondary, which appear later 
as a consequence of the former. 

The Primary symptoms, — which begin from the third 
to the tenth day after infection — are the simple syphilitic 
ulcer, of which there are several kinds; the indurated, 
the phagedenic, the gangrenous ulcer and the bubo. All 
these varieties are due to the same cause, and may be 



144 A TUB'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

produced the one by the other. The simple venereal 
ulcer is a contagious sore, arising from local infection. 
The several varieties are called chancres. They "begin with 
a small red spot, followed by a yellowish -white point, grad- 
ually changing to a small, slightly excavated ulcer, hav- 
ing its base covered with a yellowish-white and very ad- 
hesive substance. These ulcers may produce all the sec- 
ondary forms of the disease. The indurated venereal 
ulcer is a chancre which is circular, excavated, without 
granulations, covered with a whitish adherent matter, 
having a callous base, with hard thick edges. This 
chancre spreads to a considerable size, but without ex- 
cavation. Secondary affections are very apt to follow. 
The phagedenic venereal ulcer spreads with great rapid- 
ity, generally causing great havoc in the course of a few 
days, but sometimes advances slowly. It is occasionally 
followed by hemorrhage. Every form of secondary af- 
fection is observed to follow this variety. The gangre- 
nous venereal ulcer is the most terrific of all the primary 
affections. It begins with a small blackish spot, and is at 
first attended with little pain, but goes on increasing until 
a slough separates, leaving a highly corroding sore, at- 
tended with acute pain ; and the process continues till 
the parts are wholly destroyed. In those persons who 
escape such mutilation, the secondary symptoms ensue. 
The venereal bubo is a swelling in the groin, attended 
with more or less pain. This may pass away by the use 
of certain remedies, or it may suppurate. 

In the treatment of primary syphilitic chancres, the 
mercurial and the non-mercurial methods are employed, 



SOCIAL VICE. 145 

both of which have often proved successful, but the non- 
mercurial is generally preferred by the most eminent 
physicians. Destruction of the chancres by nitric acid, 
or lunar caustic, is frequently effectual, if applied in the 
early stage, before the disease has affected the constitu- 
tion. 

If the sore be destroyed by caustic or other means on 
the third, fourth, or fifth day after the disease was con- 
tracted, nearly all risk of constitutional affection is re- 
moved. On the fifth day the poison enters the system. 

The secondary symptoms are very numerous and va- 
ried ; these are almost certain to occur in all cases which 
have been neglected or improperly managed, and they 
will sometimes take place even under the best manage- 
ment. 

The first appearance of the secondary form is usually 
upon the breast, or the arms. The eruptions present a 
diversity of appearance. One variety consists of blotches, 
which soon disappear, leaving a rough condition of the 
skin. Another variety appears in scaly eruptions, be- 
ginning with copper-colored pustules, which are soon 
covered with scales ; when these are brushed away, shal- 
low ulcers, with copper-colored edges, are disclosed. 
Still another variety of eruptions appear upon the nose 
and face being followed by deep ulcers. The joints and 
eyes become affected, and blindness is very liable to en- 
sue. There are deep ulcers upon the limbs; the hair 
falls, and the most excruciating pains occur in every part 
of the body, and frequently this long train of evils ensue 
before the invasion of the throat; this is ushered in by 

10 



146 A YE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

a sensation of discomfort in swallowing ; then follows ex- 
tensive ulceration of the tonsiis, and the entire destruc- 
tion of these organs and of adjacent parts; the tongue 
and the mouth show extensive ulceration; then the nose 
and the nasal cavities become involved. There is partial 
or complete closure of the nostrils, with extreme tender- 
ness, pain and ulceration ; there is an increasing thin and 
fetid discharge from the nose. The destruction of the 
fleshy tissues proceeds, and the bones also generally be- 
come extensively involved, and decay; the palatine arch 
and the bones of the nose are completely destroyed; the 
nose then sinks almost to a level with the face; the 
voice is changed in quality, and the pronunciation of a 
certain class of words is an impossibility ; very often the 
vocal ligaments are destroyed, and the sufferer can then 
only speak in a whisper. The bones of the forehead are 
also liable to become involved in the general havoc. The 
most terrible physical suffering is experienced, especially 
during the night ; exfoliations, or scales of bone, are fre- 
quently removed from the nostrils; the head aches; the 
face is swollen, and the stench from the decaving bone is 
intolerable. 

Sometimes there is hectic fever ; the patient becomes 
very weak and emaciated, and appears to be rapidly sink- 
ing in consumption. The purulent secretion passes into 
the stomach, and the sufferer becomes as loathsome to 
himself as to others. 

It is perhaps impossible to conceive a more pitiable, dis- 
tressing and loathsome condition than that of this terri- 
ble disease. All the symptoms enumerated, and others, 
are liable to ensue. 



SECRETS FOB WOMEN. 159 

ditions, there is no cause for solicitude, fashion, gentility 
and high life are adverse to such conditions, and tend to 
the causation of evils, which, in, early time, culminate in 
chronic ailments, that often defy all curative measures. 
Under our present customs, young women, in almost as great 
numbers as women in middle life, suffer with those weak- 
nesses which undermine the physical constitution, induce 
nervous disorders of every type, wasting diseases, debility, 
destruction of the natural functions, and terminate in 
early death. How many young women fall victims to ex- 
posure to inclemencies of weather, wearing unsuitable ap- 
parel, and thin shoes, tight-lacing, overheated apartmentr, 
to fashion's demand in a variety of ways, to lack of ex- 
ercise in the open air, unsuitable diet, and overstimula- 
tion of the mental faculties ! The compression, by tight- 
lacing, tends to cause displacement of the abdominal or- 
gans, and especially derangement of the uterine system, — 
such as inflammations, ulcerations and periodical suffer- 
ing of great intensity, which, once established, are liable 
to continue for years; and recovery, without medical 
treatment, seldom occurs. 

I shall briefly note some of the diseases peculiar to the 
sex, the causes of which have been mentioned. Anything 
that may cause debility of the nervous or the muscular sys- 
tems may give rise to this class of ailments: — 

Leucorrh.cea may be due to Polypus, or Hemorrhoids, 
or to irritation, and this disorder may cause other afflic- 
tions. The symptoms are pain in the back, sense of 
weight in the pelvis — " a dragging down sensation" as it 
is often expressed ; a disagreeable feeling in the back of 
the head, or pain in the top of the head. 



160 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Other ailments are Inflammation of the uterus, pro- 
lapsus or falling of the organ, abscess, tumors, and other 
conditions to be mentioned. 

Amenorrhoea, or absence of the menses, — never hav- 
ing appeared, is due to debility and derangements of the 
constitution, and may be masked or replaced by Leucor- 
rhoea. Unless the cause is removed and the function es- 
tablished, disease or death is liable to ensue. There may 
occur suppression, the cause being either a cold, or a 
shock, or from delicate health, or uterine, or ovarian dis- 
ease. This ailment may be complicated, and often is, 
with a disease of the lungs, or other tuberculous affection, 
Dyspepsia, Chlorosis or "Consumption of the Blood, " 
Hysteria, Leucorrhoea, or Paralysis. Vicarious menstru- 
ation may occur from the lungs, or from various parts of 
the body. 

Dysmenorrhoea or painful menstruation, may be 
caused by neuralgia, congestion, or inflammation. The 
menses, in this affection, may be scanty, or profuse, or or- 
dinary, but there is excessive local pain, and general 
disorder. The condition is more frequently due to in- 
flammation or congestion, than to any other cause, but 
may be complicated with Chlorosis, Hysteria or Sympa- 
thetic fever. 

Menorrhagia — excessive menstruation — is very of- 
ten attended with dangerous uterine hemorrhage, and may 
be complicated with leucorrhoea or tumors of the uterus. 

The Turn of Life, or final cessation of the menses, 
— perhaps the most critical period in the life of woman, — 
usually occurs at the age of about forty-five years, but may 



SECRETS FOR WOMEN. 161 

occur at any time, from the 33d to the 58th year of life. 
It is often attended with profuse uterine hemorrhage, and 
may be followed by organic disease of the uterus or ovar- 
ies, hemorrhages, inflammations, apoplexy, palsy, insanity, 
hysteria, hemorrhoids, dyspepsia, rheumatism, cutaneous 
diseases, ulcers or cancers. Hence the vital importance 
of maintaining sound health, that the system may not 
succumb to those lurking and insidious maladies which 
are far more liable to development at this period, than at 
any other. It is easier to prevent diseases than to cure 
them. If there is any hereditary predisposition even 
though remote — to any ailment, or if there is any chronic 
affection existing, even comparatively unimportant, pru- 
dence would suggest prompt and proper precautionary 
measures, not necessarily medication, but rigid observ- 
ance of hygienic laws, more especially exercise in the free 
air, attention to diet, bathing, and sleep. A cancerous or 
scrofulous condition of the blood, which might not have 
hitherto been either a cause of suffering or solicitude, is 
then especially liable to develop into cancer, or into tu- 
berculous disease; and a debilitated condition of the 
nervous system offers little resistance to Paralysis ; an ir- 
ritable condition of the heart, from sympathetic causes, 
may develop into fatal organic disease, for at no other 
period of life is there such sensibility or susceptibility to 
those influences which are antagonistic to life. If the 
powers of the constitution be sound, the period is passed 
in safety, and the chances of long and healthful life are 
greater than ever before. 

Inflammation of the Uterus is characterized by a 
11 



162 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

variety of symptoms : pain in the back, — darting down- 
ward to the limbs, chills, fever, nausea, and vomiting. 
Inflammation may be followed by permanent enlargement 
(Hypertrophy), Induration (hardening), softening, ab- 
scess, or gangrene of the uterus. It may be mistaken 
for cystitis (inflammation of the bladder), or for a disease of 
the rectum. Ulceration of the organ may be complicated 
with leucorrhoea, and this terrible condition may ensue 
from inflammation. 

Fibrous Tumor is liable to appear, to attain great 
size, and to be attended with very serious complications, 
as menorrhagia, etc., but the difficulty, in its incipiency, 
generally yields to skillful treatment. 

Polypus of the Uterus is attended with similar 
symptoms, and there may also be a dropsical condition of 
the limbs. 

Corroding" ulcer of the Uterus presents extensive 
ulceration, but is less malignant than cancer. It may be 
either painful or painless, but often causes emaciation and 
low fever. It may be followed by hemorrhage, or Perito- 
nitis, —an inflammation of the membranous lining of the 
abdominal cavity. 

Cancer of the Uterus is one of the most distress- 
ing and hopeless diseases that can afflict humanity. The 
symptoms at first are obscure; later, there is a sensation 
of weight, of enlargement, lancinating pain, hemor- 
rhage, low fever, dyspepsia, diarrhoea. ; peritonitis, and 
compression of other organs. 

There also occur displacements of the uterus. 

Retroversion; In this disorder the uterus falls 



SECRETS FOR WOMEN. 163 

backward, the symptoms being derangement of menstru- 
ation, aching in the loins and back, constipation, and 
sometimes retention of urine. It may be complicated with 
hysteria and Dyspepsia. 

Anteversion; This is a change in the position of 
the uterus where it falls forward, pressing upon the ure- 
thra—water passage — and the rectum, causing retention 
of urine and constipation. 

Prolapsus Uteri, or Falling" of the Womb. 

This may be partial or complete, and may occur from 
tumor, enlargement, or from pressure of adjacent diseased 
parts, or from mechanical injury; however it occurs, it 
causes great suffering, and is very common in every com- 
munity. The various appliances used as mechanical 
support, are seldom productive of permanent benefit, but 
on the contrary, often cause positive injury, even to the 
development of cancer. In the greater number of cases, 
the ailment may be cured by skillful treatment. 

It is usual for physicians to make an effort to replace 
the organ, but often they fail practically, for it will re- 
main in position no longer than the time occupied in the 
operation. So long as there is an engorgement, in- 
creased weight of the organ, and a relaxed condition 
generally, the efforts to replace the womb must result in 
failure. It is possible, however, for a lady to assume such 
a position as to replace the womb herself, as will be shown. 
In most cases of prolapsus of the uterus, there is also 
prolapsus of the bowels, in consequence of walking, 
standing, or sitting in a stooped position ; the bowels, 
instead of resting upon the arch of the pubis, descend 



164 A YER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

into the pelvis. In the erect posture, the promontory 
of the sacrum — lower portion of the spine — closes the 
opening between the pubis and promontory sufficiently 
to be a practical closure. The promontory of the sa- 
crum is thrown forward, when the body is straightened, 
so as to nearly close up the entrance of the pelvis. If it 
were possible for a physician to replace the womb so as 
to remain in position, but it might not be convenient to be 
present always on his patient's retiring, and it is of im- 
portance that the uterus and also the bowels should be 
replaced every night, so that during sleep, the organs 
may all be in the proper position ; but the woman can do 
all this for herself by observing the following instructions : 
After retiring, the patient may remove the pillows, get 
upon her knees, and bend her shoulders down until they 
rest upon the bed. This will put the body into an in- 
clined plane, with the hips considerably higher than the 
rest of the body. 

This position favors the replacement of the prolapsed 
bowels; when the bowels are replaced, the womb very 
readily returns to its natural position, on the admission 
of air through the passage leading from that organ ; 
hence the necessity of drawing up the fallen bowels, 
which can only be done by placing the hips in an elevated 
position as above directed. Being in the proper position, 
the patient may take hold of the bowels with both hands, 
and pull them toward her shoulders, then by admission 
of air, the womb will at once pass to its normal position. 

This operation may be made every night. The patient 
should lie upon her side, and the uterus will remain in 



SECRETS FOR WOMEN. 165 

position during the night. By the use of the local rem- 
edy specified below, the engorgement of the uterus, and 
the relaxed condition of other parts, will be corrected, 
and there will no longer be falling of the womb. 

Inversion of the Uterus : This condition is caused 
by tumor. Happily the derangement is rare. The symp- 
toms are sudden and alarming, — exhaustion, pallor, rapid 
pulse, vomiting, and sometimes fatal hemorrhage. 

Diseases of the Ovaries are very common. Ovaritis 
is an inflammation, either acute or chronic, and may be 
complicated with uterine or peritoneal inflammation, and 
may be followed by induration (or hardening) softening, 
abscess, gangrene, malignant growths, fibrous and other 
tumors. 

In malignant disease of the parts, both ovaries being 
involved, there is great pain, and enlargement, with sup- 
pression of menstruation. The ailment may be compli- 
cated with peritonitis. There also sometimes occurs a 
displacement of the ovary. 

Besides the affections mentioned, there may be rheu- 
matism and spasm of the uterus, palpitation, fainting, 
difficulty of breathing, cough and hemorrhage of the 
lungs, nervous disorders, sleeplessness, convulsions, head- 
ache, epilepsy, apoplexy, disorders of vision and hearing, 
neuralgia, cramps, dropsy and other ills, all resultant 
from uterine diseases. 

Allusion has been made to the physical consequences 
of the crime of foeticide, or efforts to thwart the grand 
design of nature in relation to maternity. The attempt 
to accomplish the end, whether successful or otherwise, 



166 AYE IPS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

is fraught with imminent peril. Among the consequences 
to the mother, there may be fatal hemorrhage, or any 
form of those terrible and distressing local diseases above 
described. It cannot be done at any period, nor in any 
manner with safety. In the earliest stage of pregnancy, 
a change takes place in the general system, which becomes 
more and more marked during the entire period. The 
mother's heart supplies blood directly for her child, by 
that economy we term the foetal circulation ; it must be 
obvious to all intelligent minds who are aware of the new 
relations established, that the violent and unnatural sun- 
dering of such relations can only be productive of the 
gravest evil. 



Best Prescriptions. 

FOR LEUCORRH03A. 

$ [307] 

Fluid ext. Yerba Keuma, half ounce; Aqua dest., 
three and a half ounces. Mix. Use as an injection 
twice or three times daily. 



B [308] 

Zinci Sulph., forty grains; Acet. Plumbi, one drachm; 
Aqua dest., eight ounces. Mix. Use as an injection 
morning and evening — a tablespoonful to a tablespoon- 
ful of water. 

3 [309] 

Listerine, one ounce; Fluid ext. Hamamelis, one 
ounce ; Water eight ounces. Use as an injection twice 
daily. A tablespoonful to a tablespoonful of water. 



SECRETS FOR W021EX. 16? 

3 [310] 

Fluid ext. Golden Seal, (colorless) one ounce ; Water, 
seven ounces. Mix. Use as an injection morning and 
evening. Quantity as in the preceding. 



3 [3H] 

The Fluid ext. Marshrosemary, and also Fluid ext. 
Juniper Berries are useful for Leucorrhoea, and the latter 
for Dysuria, or difficulty of urination. Dose of either 
from thirty to sixty drops. 



3 [312] 

The Fluid extract Pareira Brava is excellent for this 
ailment, also for Gravel and other derangements of the 
urinary organs. Dose, from thirty to sixty drops. The 
Fluid extract Matico is used for the same purposes. 
Dose, twenty to forty drops. 



Hysteria, ahd Dysmenorrhea or 
Painful Menstruation. 

3 [313] 

In these ailments, Chlorodyne acts very promptly, 
taken in doses of ten drops, two or three times a day, if 
needed. 

It is also excellent in Nervous headaches, Rheuma 
tism, Diabetes and Consumption. Chlor-Anodyne is 
still better. It is made of Morphia, Cannabis Indica, 
Chloroform, Oil of Peppermint, Tincture of Capsicum, 
Hydrocyanic Acid, dilute Alcohol and Glycerine. 



An Excellent Application for Painful 

Menstruation. 

3 [314] 

Extract Belladonna, half drachm; Lard, half ounce. 
Mix well, and apply to the neck of the womb oc- 
casionally. 



168 A YE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

B [315] 

The Fluid extract Motherwort is valuable in Amenor- 
rhoea — Suppression — Dysmenorrhea, also in Hysteria, 
and Nervous headache. Dose, from twenty to forty 
drops. 

Fluid extract Mugwort is used for the same purposes 
also for Epilepsy. Same doses. 



The Best Female Regulator. 

3 [316J 

There is no single agent more effective than the Fluid 
extract of Life Root. It is most valuable in Amenor- 
rhea, Dysmenorrhea, Gravel, and Kidney diseases. 
Dose, twenty to sixty drops, twice daily, between the 
periods. Small doses often act more effectively than 
larger doses. 



Best Remedy for Uterine Hemorrhage. 

$ [317] 

Liquor Ergotae Purificatus — Fluid extract of Ergot — 
taken in twenty drop doses, and repeated in twenty 
minutes in extreme cases, is the most prompt agent 
known. Stimulants — Brandy preferred — should be 
given to sustain the strength of the patient. 

The Fluid extract Hamamelis — Witch hazel, — is ex- 
cellent in such cases, as it is also for Leucorrhcea. 
Dose, from twenty to sixty drops. Small doses may be 
repeated every half hour, if necessary. Even five drops, 
repeated at brief intervals, have controlled the worst 
cases. This remedy is but little less prompt than 
Ergot. 

The Fluid extract of Solomon's Seal is successfully 
used for Menorrhagia — excessive menstruation, and for 
Piles. Dose, from thirty to sixty drops two or three 
times a day. 



SEC BETS FOR WOMEN 169 

Constipation is a factor in nearly every case of uter- 
ine disease. A large number of the best prescriptions 
will be found under the appropriate heading. 



For Ulceration of the Uterus. 

% [318] 

Pulverized Iodoform is an excellent remedy. It may 
be introduced through a flexible tube with the breath, 
by the patient herself. The application should be 
made twice a week. It can also be introduced by 
gelatine capsules. After its introduction, absorbent 
cotton, to which a thread is attached, should be intro- 
duced to keep it in place. 

Oxide of Zinc costs less, is less offensive in smell, and 
equally efficacious ; it may be used in the same manner. 
If this, be used in capsules or suppositories, the zinc may 
be combined with an equal quantity of each of the follow- 
ing:— 



$ [319] 

Oxide Zirc, Oil Eucalyptus, Fluid extract Hamamelis, 
Golden Seal and Listerine. 



For Amenorrhea or Suppression. 

3 [320] 

Ergotin ; ext. Helleb. Nig. ; Ferri Sulph. Exsic. 
Pulv. Aloes, of each one grain; 01. Sabinse, quarter 
grain. Mix. One pill three times a day, for the days 
prior to the expected period. 



S [321] 

The Fluid extract Ginger is often successfully used to 
induce and promote menstruation. It is safe and valua- 
ble. Dose, ten to thirty drops, in hot water, upon retir 
ing. Or the following will generally prove efficacious: — 



170 AYEIVS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

# [322] 

The Fluid extract Carpenter's Square is a general al- 
terative, used in female irregularities with much success. 
Dose, thirty to sixty drops. 

The Fluid extract Agrimony is used in Leucorrhea, 
Gravel and Gonorrhoea. Half to one teaspoonful. 

The Fluid extract Black Cohosh is used for correction 
of irregularities in menstruation. Dose, ten to thirty 
drops. 

Fluid extract Water-Pepper (smart-weed) is useful for 
Amenorrhea, Dysmenorrhea, Gravel, etc. Dose, thirty 
to sixty drops. 

Fluid extract Uva Ursa (bear-grape) is a good remedy 
in Leucorrhoea, Chronic Catarrh of the bladder, Diabetes, 
and Gravel. Dose, ten to forty drops. 



A Valuable Remedy. 

3 [323] 

The Fluid extract Unicorn (Star-grass) is highly valua- 
ble for dysmenorrhea, amenorrhea, menorrhagia, hys- 
teria, and to prevent miscarriage. Dose, five to ten 
drops, one or several times a day, according to symptoms. 

The Fluid extract Solomon's Seal is used for menor- 
rhagia, and for Piles. Dose, thirty to sixty drops. 
Fluid extract Hamamelis is used for excessive flowing and 
for Leucorrhea. Twenty to sixty drops. 

The Fluid extract Quercus Alba (white oak) is a good 
injection in some cases of Leucorrhea. 



Passive Hemorrhage. 

3 [324] 

The Fluid ext. Fireweed in doses of thirty to sixty 
drops, is excellent in all passive hemorrhages, of the 
lungs, uterus, and for hemorrhoids. 



A Good Pill. 
Useful in Leucorrhea, Hysteria, Dysmenorrhea, tor- 



SECRETS FOR WOMEN. 171 

pidity of function, Melancholia, and other mental de- 
rangements, occurring on the appearance or cessation of 
the menses: — 



3 [325] 

Phosphorus, one grain; Zinci Sulphas, fifty grains; 
Lupulina, fifty grains. Mix. Make fifty pills. Dose, 
one or two pills three times a day. 



To Restore Menstruation in Cases of 
Suppression. 
3 [326] 

In suppression from Consumption or impoverished 
condition of the blood, take some of the preparations of 
iron, prescriptions of which will be found in "Tonic 
treatment of Consumption"; also take much exeicise 
especially walking in the open air, and live generously. 



For Uterine Ulceration. 

3 [328] 

The Oil of Ergot is highly efficacious in various affec- 
tions of the mucous membrane. Applied with cotton 
in ulceration of the uterus, it acts with great prompt- 
ness. 



For Amenorrhea. 

3 [329] 

Manganesii Iodidi ; Ext. Sanguinarise, of each, twelve 
grains; Macrotine, twenty-four grains. Mix. Make 
twenty-four pills. One pill three times daily. 



3 [330] 

For blood in the urine, bleeding piles, and Menor- 
rhagia, two drops Fluid Ext. Witch-hazel every hour will 
prove efficacious. 



172 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

For Irregular Menstruation. 

3 [331] 

Tinct. Bloodroot, one ounce; Tinct. Black Cohosh, 
two ounces ; Alcohol, one pint ; Aqua, one pint. Mix. 
One teaspoonful twice daily, for a week prior to the ex- 
pected period. 



Nurse's Sore Mouth. 

3 [332] 

In all cases, there is difficulty of the uterus — gener- 
ally Leucorrhcea. The following will cure: Tinct. Eupa- 
toriuni Aromaticum, two drachms : Fluid Ext. Hydrastis, 
two drachms; Aqua, three and a half ounces. Mix. 
One teaspoonful every hour. It cures rapidly ; Leucor- 
rhoea is stopped, and the nervous element of the disease, 
marked by morbid watchfulness, throbbing headache, 
etc., is perfectly controlled. 



$ [333] 

The itching which sometimes occurs is quickly cured 
by an ointment of Vaseline, one ounce, and Oxide 
Zinci, one drachm. 



For Dysmenorrhea. 

# [334] 

Viburnum Prunifolium Fluid Extract; Fid. Ext. Opu- 
lus, of each, half drachm. This dose taken every 15 
minutes. If this fails, as it sometimes does, give the 
followiDg: — 

3 [335] 

Stylosanthes Tinct., thirty drops; Pulsatilla, five 
drops. Mix. This dose three times a day. 



SECRETS FOR WOMEN. 173 

OR 

# [336] 

Fid. Ext. Pulsatilla, half drachm ; Fid. Ext. Macrotys, 
half drachm; Aquae sufficient to make four ounces. 
Mix. One teaspoonful five times a day. Commence its 
use one week before, and continue it during the period. 



OR 

3 [337] 

Pulv. Abroma Augustum in doses of on£ drachm, 
every three hours during the day, a week before and dur- 
ing the period. 

Muriate Ammonia is also excellent. 



Turn of Life. 

# [338] 

Nervous Flashes: Occasionally use Tinct. Bella- 
donna, five drops, three times a day, until the extra 
flow of blood to the head ceases. The bowels should be 
kept regular by the use of Cascara Cordial. 



OR 

3 [339] 

Ammonium Brom., one ounce; Aquae dest, four 
ounces. One teaspoonful three or four times a day, 
well diluted, — last dose just before retiring. 



<&&»£^ 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES FOR 
' MANY ILLS. 

Intermittent Fever — Fever and Ague. 

B [340] 

Sulph. Quinia, thirty grains; Aro-Sulph. Acid, forty 
drops; Co. Tinct. Cardamom, three drachms; Syrup 
Simplex, one ounce; Aqua dest., one ounce. Mix, A 
teaspoonful three or four times daily. The above is an 
excellent remedy, indeed it will cure almost every case. 



3 [341] 

Bitter-root Pulv. is a reliable remedy. Two or three 
grains in water every two hours, till ten or twelve pow- 
ders have been taken, will generally cure in two days. 
In over-doses it is emetic. 



Excellent Cholagogue. 
# [342] 

Sulph. Quinia, one and a half drachms; Alcohol, four 
ounces; Bayberry Bark, half ounce; Parilla rad., half 
ounce; Oil Wintergreen, one drachm; Peruvian Bark, 
half pound; Tinct. Rhei Dulcis, two drachms; Aqua 
Pura, four ounces; Simple Syrup sufficient to make 
(174) 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 175 

one quart. Let it stand a week; strain and filter. 
Dose, a tablespoonful three times a day. 



3 [343] 

The Fluid ext. Am. Centaury is often used as a substi- 
tute for Quinine, and is a preventive of malarial disease. 
Dose, twenty to sixty drops. (Dose of the Tincture 
from one to two teaspoonfuls.) The Fluid extract of 
Cinchona is used for the same purpose, also for debility. 
Dose, fifteen to thirty drops. 



Anti-Chill Remedy. 

3 [344] 

Chinoidine, twenty grains; Ferri Ferrocyanidum, 
twenty grains ; 01. Piper Nig. , twenty grains ; Acid Ar- 
seniosum, one grain. Mix. Make twenty pills. One or 
two pills daily. 



Anti-Periodic Pills. 

3 [345] 

Cinchonidiee Sulph., thirty-two grains; Ferri Sulph. 
Exsic, sixteen grains; Res. Podophylli; Gelsemin, of 
each, one and a half grains; Strychnia Sulph., one 
grain ; Oleo Resina Capsici, three drops. Mix. Make 
forty-two pills. Dose, one pill, once or twice daily. 



For Malarial Fever. 
3 [346] 

Quinise Sulph. ; Quinidise Sulph. ; Cinch onidae Sulph. ; 
Cinchoniae Sulph., of each, half grain. Mix. Dose, the 
same as two-grain Quinine pills. These preparations are 
used with great success in Malarial fevers, in the place of 
Quinine. 



176 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH 

$ [347] 

The Fluid extract Gelseminum is a nerve and arterial 
stimulant, and is used in intermittent fever, — often 
in connection with Quinine. Dose for an adult, three 
drops. 



Tonic, Alterative and Febrifuge. 

B [348] 

Quiniae Sulph., sixty grains; Acid Arseniosum, one 
grain; ext. Nucis Vomicae, fifteen grains. Mix. Make 
sixty pills. Dose, one pill twice daily. 



B [349] 

Fluid extract Eucalyptus is a good remedy in inter- 
mittent fever; also in ulceration of the stomach and 
bowels, Typhoid fever, and Scarlatina. Dose, from three 
to five drops, once or twice a day, as needed. 



$ [350] 

The Citrate of iron and Quinine may be given — one 
grain of each, two or three times daily, in all cases of im- 
poverished blood, with enlarged spleen, which often ac- 
companies autumnal fevers. 

Salicin is tonic and astringent, and is often required 
in intermittent fever. Dose, three to six grains, three 
times a day. 



An Efficient Remedy in Intermittent 

Fever. 

3 [351] 

Chinoidine, Leptandrin, of each, twenty-four grains; 
ext. Sanguinariae, twelve grains. Mix. Make twenty- 
four pills. One pill every three hours during the day. 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 177 

Another, Sometimes Used. 

$ [352] 

Sulph. Quinine, two drachms; Fid. ext. Leptandra, 
two drachms ; Saturated Tinct. Stillingia, four ounces ; 
Fluid ext. Podophyllum, three drachms ; Oil of Sassafras, 
ten drops ; Oil of Wintergreen, ten drops ; Simple Syrup 
sufficient to make eight ounces. Mix. Dose, one tea- 
spoonful once daily. 



EXTERNAL APPLICATIONS. 

For Ulceration. 

# [353] 

Iodoform is, perhaps, the best application for irritable 
ulcers. Fill the cavity of the ulcer with pulverized Iodo- 
form, and cover with a piece of lead adhesive plaster. 
The ulcer will generally be cured in a week. It is a 
healer of ulcers and a quieter of pain. 



B [354] 

The Fluid ext. Button Snake root, as a local applica- 
tion cures bites of snakes and of insects. 



For Felons. 

3 [355] 

Honey, Pulv. Alum and Wheat Flour, equal parts. 
Moisten with vinegar, and poultice twice daily. Or 
Pulv. Camphor, Opium, Brown Sugar, and Castile soap, 
equal parts. Wet to a paste with Spirits of Turpentine. 
Apply with a cloth twice daily. Or, Common Rock Salt, 
dried in an oven. Pulverize, and mix with an equal 
quantity of Spirits Turpentine. Put on a cloth and 
wrap the part loosely; as it dries, apply more. Often 
cures the felon in twenty-four hours. 

12 



178 AYEIVS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Another. 

B [356] 

When a felon first appears, take the lining of an egg- 
shell and wrap the part. When the pressure becomes 
too painful, wet it with water, and keep it on twelve 
hours. Or obtain five or six lemons ; cut off the end of 
one, and insert the sore finger; let it remain till the 
lemon is warm. Use all in the same way. Or on the 
first appearance, apply a poultice of the Fleur de Lis 
root, well mashed. Any of these remedies will soon 
cure. 



For Bruises, and Inflammation. 

$ [357] 

Pulv. Gum Camphor, one ounce; Laudanum, two 
ounces ; Aqua Ammonia, one ounce ; Oil Origanum, one 
ounce; Oil Hemlock, one ounce, Alcohol, one pint. 
Dissolve, and apply several times daily. 



For Chilblains. 

B [358] 

Sulph. Acid, one drachm; Spirits Turpentine, one 
drachm ; Olive Oil, half ounce. Mix the oil and turpen- 
tine, then gradually add the acid. Apply two or three 
times daily. 



Frosted Feet. 

3 [359] 

Take turnips (red top) cut into thin slices, sprinkle 
fine salt upon them, pile them one on another, in a dish, 
and let stand six hours ; then squeeze well, and to nine 
parts of the liquor so obtained, add one part of Proligne- 
ous Acid — the commercial, not the purified. Two or at 
most three thorough applications, rubbing in well, by 
hot stove, will cure any ordinary case of frost-bite. 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 179 

Wash for Chronic, and Fetid Ulcers. 

$ [360] 

Chlorate Potass., two drachms; strong Hydrochloric 
Acid, forty drops ; Aqua dest., one pint. Mix. Apply 
daily. 

The very best known remedy for indolent ulcers of 
Syphilis, Scrofula, etc., is Ayer's Australian Oint- 
ment. 



For Sunburns and Freckles. 

3 [361] 

Lime Water and Flax-seed Oil, equal parts. Apply 
daily. 



A Better Remedy. 

3 [362] 

Sulpho-Carbolate Zinc, one ounce; Collodion, forty- 
five ounces ; Oil of lemon, one oz. ; Alcohol, five ounces. 
Mix. The zinc should be reduced to a very fine powder, 
and thoroughly mixed. Apply once daily. Wash off 
after half an hour. 



The Best Lotion for the Same. 

# '[363] 

Zinci Sulpho-Carbol. ; Glycerinae; Aqua Rosse; Spir- 
its Vini rect., of each, one ounce. Mix. Apply twice 
daily, and wash off after half an hour. 



For Bunions. 
B [364] 

Sugar of lead, two drachms ; Laudanum, one drachm ; 
Aqua dest., half pint. Apply two or three times daily. 



180 AYEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

B [365] 

Fid. ext. Rhatany is an excellent application for piles, 
bleeding ulcers or spongy gums. 

Fluid extract Hyoscyamus is useful for painful 
bruises and tumors. 






Stimulating Liniment. 
Valuable in Cholera, etc. 

3 [366] 

Liq. Ammonia, Spirits Turpentine, of each, three 
ounces; Spirits Camphor; Olive Oil, of each, four 
ounces; Mustard; Capsicum, of each, two drachms. 
Mix. Apply with hot flannels. 



For Dressing Cuts, Wounds, and Sores. 

3 [367] 

Surgeons 7 solution of Carbolic Acid, and pure Glycer- 
ine, equal parts, mixed and applied on soft lint or 
linen. 



For Burns. 
3 [368] 

Lime Water, Olive Oil, Glycerine, equal parts. Apply 
on lint. 



For Erysipelas. 

3 [369] 

The disease yields to a saturated aqueous solution of 
Picric Acid, applied morning and evening, with a cam- 
el's-hair brush. Also use the Mur. Tinct. of Iron, and 
the Cascara Cordial. 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 181 

Winter Eczema. 

B [370] 

For the relief of this troublesome itching, use the 
following : — 

Tannic Acid, forty grains; Glycerine; Alcohol, of 
each, half ounce ; Aqua sufficient to make four ounces. 
Apply to the itching surface with a sponge, morning 
and evening. 



For Soft Corns. 

3 [371] 

These may be cured by sprinkling a piece of cotton 
with prepared chalk, and placing it between the toes 
where the corn is. The chalk absorbs the moisture, and 
the corn disappears. 



For Lock-Jaw. 

3 [372] 

It is stated by an eminent physician, that to warm a 
little Turpentine and pour it on the wound, relief will 
follow instantly. It is excellent for a cut or bruise, also 
for Croup. Saturate a flannel with it and place it on the 
throat or chest, and in severe cases give from three to 
Ave drops, on sugar. 



To Obviate Scars. 

B [373] 

The following mixture placed upon a granulating (heal- 
ing) surface, will prevent scars from appearing at all un- 
sightly, and sometimes prevent them from being notice- 
able : — 

Borax, one and a half ounces ; Salicylic Acid, twelve 
grains; Glycerine, three drachms; Aqua Rosse, six 
ounces. Mix. Make a solution and apply several 
times daily. 



182 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Moth Patches. 

S [374] 

This unsightly blemish may be removed by the follow- 
ing : Into a pint of rum, put a tablespoonf ul flower of 
sulphur. Apply to the surface once a day, till the 
patches disappear. 



For Sprains. 

3 [375] 

Spirits Camphor, Olive Oil, Ammonia, and Chloroform, 
of each, two ounces. Shake well and apply with fric- 
tion. Use frequently. 



For Corns. 

3 [376] 

Apply Olive Oil night and morning. Or wash them 
two or three evenings in a strong solution of common 
Soda, which softens them, so that they fall out. Cotton 
wet with Turpentine, applied to a soft corn, will cure it. 



For Burns or Scalds. 

3 [377] 

If slight, apply the white of an egg, with a pencil 
brush ; as the first layer dries, apply another. If exten- 
sive and there is danger of mortification, bind on a 
cloth dipped in tar. For burns by alkalies — as lime, 
caustic potash, soda, ammonia, etc., apply vinegar or 
lemon juice; from acids apply water, and then moist 
earth to neutralize the acid; if lime in the eye, use vine- 
gar. 

For burns from steam or boiling water, saturate a 
cloth with the Fluid extract of Jamaica Dogwood, and 
bind it loosely on the parts. Keep it moist, by frequent 
applications. The pain will soon cease. Use old linen 
for bandage. 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 183 

Bi-Carbonate Soda (such as is used for bread-making) 
gives prompt relief to a burn or scald. Applied immedi- 
ately, either dry or wet, to the burned part, the relief is al- 
most magical. There is nothing more healing in such 
cases, than the white of an egg\ it is softer and more 
soothing than Collodion, and more cooling than sweet-oil 
and cotton. 

A good dressing for burns is : Boracic Acid, eighteen 
grains, dissolved in a drachm of hot Glycerine ; add an 
ounce of Olive Oil. Shake well before applying. 



For Parasitic Skin Diseases. 

3 [378] 

From the hairy parts, cut off the hair, over and about 
the affected part ; then anoint with fluid Cosmoline, or 
Glycerine, or bread and milk poultice, applied for the 
purpose of dislodging scales, crusts or dirt. The oint- 
ment of Oleate of Copper, of such strength as is suited to 
the severity of the case, is then rubbed into the diseased 
patches, gently but thoroughly, to secure complete and 
rapid absorption. The parts may be covered or left bare. 
Anoint twice daily. The strength of the ointment va- 
ries with the severity of the caso. — from one drachm to 
six of the copper, to the ounce of Cosmoline well mixed. 
Few cases require continuance over two weeks. 



Cure for Papular Eczema, Mange, 
Scratches, or Mexican Itch. 
? [379] 

Ungt. Sulph., one ounce; Hydrarg. Ox. rub., two 
drachms; Terebinth. Ven., one drachm; Acid Sulph. 
(pure) thirty drops. Mix. Wash the parts and apply 
sparingly, but twice. It also cures certain other skin 
diseases — as Porrigo Scutulata. 



184 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

For Sycosis — Barber's Itch. 

B [380] 

Make a twenty per cent ointment of Oleate Copper 
and Glycerine, and keep it in contact with the parts for 
several days without removal. The eruption quickly 
disappears. It has cured cases of 25 years standing, 
in less than a month. 



Scabies, or Itch. 

Flowers of sulphur, one part ; Quick Lime, two parts ; 
Aqua, ten parts. Mix. Boil; stirring till well mixed; 
cool; pour into a jar, and heremetically seal. After a 
warm bath, paint with the solution, and put to bed, in 
blankets. A warm bath again, and the patient is cured. 



To Destroy Fungus Growths. 

3 [382] 

This may be done without impairing healthy tissues. 
The diseased tissue is dissolved into a pulp by Lac- 
tic Acid. By a plaster of bees-wax, protect the 
healthy tissue; a piece of linen, the size of the affected 
part is soaked in a concentrated solution of Lactic Acid, 
and kept in place by a layer of cotton, and a bandage. 

We may also employ a paste made of Lactic Acid and 
Salicylic Acid; the dressing left on for twelve hours, 
then removed, and the surface carefully cleaned. The 
next 24 or 4S hours, dress with water, then apply the acid 
again. The process repeated six or seven times, with an 
interval of a day or two between each application. No 
pain is caused by it. 



Mosquito Bites'. 
3 [383] 

A lotion of Grindelia Robusta will allay itching and 
pain from the 6ting of these and other insects. 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 185 

One drachm each of Chloroform and Spirits of Cam- 
phor, and two grains of Corrosive Sublimate, in four 
ounces of water, will allay the irritation caused by mos- 
quitos and other insects. 



Cancer. 

3 [384] 

To diminish the vascularity and capillary circulation, 
and thus limit the excessive cell growth of Cancers, ap- 
ply fresh Ergot, freshly ground to an impalpable powder, 
by means of a soft pencil brush, to the whole surface of 
the ulcer three times daily. Wash the ulcer carefully, 
once daily. After each application the ulcer may be 
covered with a light muslin, wet with the following lo- 
tion: — 

Acid Carbolici, one drachm; Acid Sulphurosi, one 
ounce; Glycerinse, four drachms; Aqua?, two and a half 
ounces. Mix. Also administer Tonics — see prescrip- 
tions already given. Often cures cancer of the breast or 
face in a short time. 

Citric Acid will assuage the violent pain which usually 
accompanies Cancer. Apply to the part, lint soaked in 
a solution of four grains of the acid, in three hundred 
and fifty of water. It affords instantaneous relief even 
in the worst cases. 



B [385] 

Fluid extract Frostweed is used largely in the treat- 
ment of Cancers — used internally and externally. Some 
physicians regard it a specific. It is also used in Scrof- 
ula, and Syphilis, as an alterative. Dose, ten to twenty 
drops, two or three times a day. Hispidula (cancer 
winter-green) is used in Scrofula, and to remove the 
cancerous taint from the system. 



186 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Cure for Epithelial Cancer. 

E [386] 

Acid Carbolici half drachm; Acid Sulphuric dil., two 
drachms; Glycerine, half ounce; Aquadest., two ounces. 
Mix. With this lotion paint the tumor freely, with a 
camel' s-hair pencil, and just before it is dry, dust freely 
with very finely powdered fresh Ergot. Repeat morning 
and night. 

Every second night apply a bread and milk poultice, to 
keep the surface of the tumor soft. Make the poultice 
contain equal quantities of bread and powdered Ergot, 
and paint the tumor once during the day with the Fluid 
extract Ergot. 



Disinfectant for Sick-Room — Valuable in 

Infectious Cases. 

ty [387] 

Oils of Rosemary, ten parts, Lavender, two and a half 
parts, Thyme, two and a half parts; mix with water, 
thirty parts; Nitric Acid, one and a half parts. Shake 
before using. Saturate a sponge and leave it to evapor- 
ate. 



Prolapsus Ani — Falling of the Rectum. 

3 [388] 

Sulph. Ferri, three grains; Aquadest., one ounce. In- 
ject half ounce twice daily for a week, then once daily 
for three weeks, and a cure is effected in almost every 
case. 



Test of Water. 
$ [389] 

Fill a quart jar two thirds full of water, and add a tea- 
spoonful of granulated sugar. If after standing 48 hours, 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 187 

the water is of a milky hue, it is impure and unhealthy. 
Saccharine (or sugary) matter always causes a fermenta- 
tion of organic matter, and hence the sugar discloses its 
presence. 

For detection of lead in drinking-water, a few drops of 
Tinct. Cochineal will color the water blue, if there be the 
remotest trace of lead. 

Charcoal is an excellent remedy for nausea. 



Danger from Anesthetics in Disease of 
the Kidneys. 

3 [390] 

In diseases of the Kidneys, the blood being loaded 
with urea, anaesthetics almost invariably cause Coma and 
death. 



For Wound From a Rusty Nail, or 
Any Inflamed Wound. 
3 [391] 

Smoke it over the fumes of burning woolen cloth, 
wool or sugar, for 15 minutes, and the pain will cease. 



B [392] 

To prevent wearing through the skin, when bed-rid- 
den, apply with a pencil brush, Collodion ; or a mixture 
made by beating the white of an egg with two teaspoon- 
fuls Alcohol. 



To Digest Bone in Cases of Accidentally 

Swallowing It. 
3 [393] 

Bondault's Pepsin, twenty grains; Muriatic Acidc. p., 
ten drops ; Aqua — luke-warm, one ounce. Mix. Three 
such doses will suffice. The gelatin will be rapidly soft- 



188 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

ened, and the calcareous —limy — matter converted into 
a minimum that will not cause injury. 



Infectious Diseases. 

B [394] 

Fowler's Solution of Arsenic is a preventive in infec- 
tious diseases. Given during the incubation period, an 
attack may be prevented, or greatly modified. Dose, two 
to four drops, twice daily for a week. 



B [395] 

Pulverized Yellow Dock is a good dentifrice, and may 
be applied to spongy gums. 



To Prevent Hair from Falling. 

$ [396] 

Dissolve one grain of Cantharidine in two drachms of 
Acetic Ether, and add rectified Spirit, three ounces; 
Castor Oil, one ounce, and Oil Lavender, fifteen drops. 
Mix well. Apply to the roots of the hair, for three 
days successively ; then wash the head thoroughly so as to 
have plenty of friction, with a good lather of warm wa- 
ter and soap. Or, a lotion of one grain of Antimonium 
tart, to an ounce of distilled water. Or — 



B [397] 

Chloral, five grammes; Aqua dest., one hundred 
grammes. Mix. Use as a lotion every evening. After 
a fortnight, no more dandruff will form, and the hair 
will cease to fall. 



Eye Diseases. 

Eye diseases in relation to general ailments of the sys- 
tem, is a subject of greatest importance. For example 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 189 

the Digestive system has much to do with the condition 
of the eyes. Diabetes may cause Cataract, or an inflamma- 
tion of all parts of the eye. Gout may also cause eye in- 
flammations. Diarrhoea and Dysentery sometimes in- 
duce cataract. Liver derangements affect vision; so 
do dentition and worms, and so too do Heart diseases. 
Kidney disorders may cause incurable diseases of the 
eye — as Optic Atrophy, Glaucoma, etc. ; 60 may Anaemia 
— an impoverished condition of the blood; and es- 
pecially so of uterine diseases and menstrual derange- 
ments. 

In the treatment of eye diseases, therefore, the skillful 
physician will make a careful diagnosis, and finding the 
cause, will direct his skill to its removal 



Inflammation of the Eyes. 



3 [398] 

Aqua Rosae, five ounces; Sugar of Lead, eight grains; 
Sulphate Zinc, five grains. Mix. Apply twice daily. 

A weak dilution of Fluid Ext. Witch Hazel, or Golden 
Seal, or Listerine often proves more effectual. 



The following is often used: — 

Zinci Sulphas two grains; Morphia Sulph., half grain; 
Aqua dest. , one ounce. Mix. Drop one or two drops 
into the eye. Avoid strong light. Do not use the eyes 
much during the treatment. 



For Ulceration of the Eye -lids. 
B [399] 
Sulph. Copper, two grains; Wine of Opium, one 



190 AYEIVS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

drachm; Aqua dest., two drachms. Mix. Apply with 
a camel's-hair brush twice daily. 



A Good Eye-wash. 

$ [400] 

Zinci Sulph., one drachm; Sal Gemmae, six grains; 
Camphorse, twelve grains; Aqua Rosas, eight ounces. 
Mix. Apply to the eyes, with a soft linen, three times a 
day. 



Acute and Chronic Inflammation of 
the Eyes. 
9 [401] 

A two per cent solution of Cocaine Muriate dropped 
in the eye two or three times a day, speedily causes 
amelioration of the symptoms and a cure of the disease. 
A drop only may be used. Often cures acute inflamma- 
tion in two days. Its effect upon the eye is marvelous. 



Diseases of the Ear. 

The greater number of cases of Ottorrhoea — pus-like 
discharges from the ear — in children under two years, 
would recover without damage to the hearing, if left 
alone. Impacted ear-wax should be soaked by a warm 
alkaline solution, then syringed with warm water. Se- 
rum (watery discharge) mucus, or muco-pus should be 
wiped out with absorbent cotton. If the discharge be 
fetid, boracic acid (borax) in solution may be applied, 
or it may be finely pulverized and snuffed by the nos- 
trils. The most essential point is freeing the middle ear 



MISCELLANEOUS BECIPES. 191 

* 

from secretion, which may be done by moderately forci- 
ble inflation by a tube applied to one nostril, the 
other being closed. 

Deafness in old people, caused by atrophy (or shrink- 
ing of the glands which secrete the ear wax) can be re- 
lieved by an ointment of morphia, yellow oxide of mer- 
cury and cosmoline to that portion of the ear called the 
meatus, and a strong alkaline gargle. When a person 
hears distinctly only in a noise — as on a railway train, 
etc. — treatment is unavailing. 



For Earache. 



# [402] 

The most prompt and effective remedy : — 
One drop of Cocaine Hydrochlorate, four per cent so- 
lution applied on a little cotton and put into the ear, 
will quickly arrest severe earache. The influence lasts 
from three to six hours. Repeat if necessary. 



For Chronic Catarrh of the External 

Ear. 

3 [403] 

Laudanum, two drops; Sulph. Zinc, four grains; 
Aqua Rosae, six drachms. Mix. A little to be applied 
three times a day. 

In any disease of the ear a spray of warm water, by 
Ayer's Spray Instrument will be very useful. 



Artificial Drum-Heads. 
3 [404] 
Cotton pellets moistened with Glycerine, one part, and 



192 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

water, four parts, and worn as artificial drum-heads, are 
a great aid to hearing, in partial or total defect of the 
natural drum-head, with or without ottorrhoea. They 
arrest profuse discharge, and prevent drying of the drum 
cavity, also prevent injury to the internal parts from the 
influences of the atmosphere ; may be worn for a life-time 
with comfort and benefit ; should be changed every day or 
two if there is discharge, if not, may be worn as long as 
comfortable, but become unclean in a week or two; 
the ears should then be cleansed and new ones used. 



Hemorrhoids — Piles. 

This distressing ailment is in almost all cases due to 
Constipation, or to lifting, or arduous physical labor. It 
may be located within the rectum, or consist of a num- 
ber of external tumors, varying in size, from that of a 
pea to nearly that of a hen's egg. In the former case, it 
is not unfrequently attended with more or less bleeding, 
and always with great pain and uneasiness, which ex- 
tends to the back and thighs, and the patient can 
neither stand nor sit with comfort. The general health 
usually suffers in a marked degree. There is often 
pallor, emaciation and great depression of spirits. The 
disease seldom attacks very young persons, and is per- 
haps more common with men than with women. Hap- 
pily the ailment is curable. 

In piles and rectal diseases, the following is invalua- 
ble:— 



3 [405] 

Menthol, one drachm; Simple Cerate, two ounces:, 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 19S 

Oil sweet almonds, one and a half ounces ; pure Oxide 
Zinc, one drachm; Chaulmoogra oil, half ounce; Car- 
bolic Acid, half drachm. Mix. Make an ointment, and 
apply once or twice daily. 



B [406] 

The fluid extract Terba Santa, in teaspoonful doses, 
with a little syrup three times a day is excellent for 
hemorrhoids, and often succeeds even after other reme- 
dies have failed. 



3 [407] 

The following rarely fails to cure such cases, and is also 
valuable for Leucorrhoea: — 

Fluid extract Cascara Sagrada, half ounce ; Fluid ext. 
Yerba Santa, Fluid ext. Pin. Canad, Fluid ext. Hamame- 
lis, of each, half ounce; Glycerine sufficient to make five 
ounces. Mix. A teaspoonful four times a day. 



# [408] 

Bruised galls, half ounce; two large Poppy-heads; 
Aqua Pura, one pint. Boil for fifteen minutes ; strain 
and apply daily. 



Specialists in these complaints, generally lance the tu- 
mors, and inject them with a solution of sulphate of iron 
three grains to the ounce of water, or carbolic acid. 
This method is generally successful. 

An old domestic remedy and a good one, is to mix a 
teaspoonful Sulphur with a teacupful of milk, and take 
it night and morning. 



Dropsy. 



This is an accumulation of fluid in one or more parts 
13 



194 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

of the body. There may be dropsy of the brain, heart, 
liver, and indeed of almost any organ of the body. 
Medical men give different names to this condition to 
denote its location, as hydrocephalus — occurring in the 
head, — ascites, in the abdomen, anasarca, — in the limbs, 
etc. It is characterized by swelling or puffiness. There 
is also a fluctuation, or wave-like motion of the part, 
which can be felt, by placing the hand on one side of the 
swelling — if the dropsy be external — and striking the 
other side with the tips of the fingers, which will produce 
a sensation as of a wave ; and there is indentation upon 
pressure, which may continue for a few moments. The 
urine becomes scanty, and the patient is greatly debili- 
tated; the perspiration is deficient; the bowels consti- 
pated; the face is livid or pale; sometimes there is 
great difficulty of breathing, and the patient complains of 
thirst, but has no fever. The limbs become swollen in 
the last stage of Consumption, and are often painful. 
By placing the limbs in a horizontal position, the swel- 
ling measurably subsides, and almost entirely disap- 
pears during the night. Occurring in this disease, it de- 
notes a hopeless condition. 



An Efficient Hydragogue, Remedy for 
Producing Watery Stools. 

3 [409] 

Elaterium (Clutterbuck's) is especially useful in drop- 
sical diseases, and has often proved successful after all 
other remedies have failed ; Elaterium, one grain ; Make 
ten pills. One pill or tenth of a grain, every hour till 
it operates freely. Use with caution. 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 195 

3 [410] 

An excellent remedy, causing a great flow of urine, and 
diminishing dropsy. 

To an infusion of two drachms pulv. fol. Jaborandi, a 
pint of hot water is added. Of this, one half is first in- 
jected into the bowels, — the remainder in half hour, if 
sweating has not occurred. The sweating will soon be 
profuse. In many cases the bed clothes become satu- 
rated. After the sweating, the dropsy diminishes rap- 
idly, and the urine increases in quantity. 

The bowel is very tolerant of the drug, and the stom- 
ach is thus spared. 



B [411] 

The Hair-cap moss or Ground Pine, in infusion, in 
doses of two or three tablespoonfuls, is a very good diu- 
retic in dropsy ; so too is the Fluid extract Juniper ber- 
ries. Dose thirty to sixty drops. 

The Fluid ext. Queen of the Meadow is used in 
dropsy, also in Kidney, and Pulmonary affections, and in 
Rheumatism. Dose, twenty to forty drops. 



9 [413] 
- Tinct. Black Cohosh, one ounce; Tinct. Myrrh, six 
drachms; Laudanum, one drachm; Tinct. Capsicum, 
one drachm. Mix. Dose, thirty to forty drops. 



3 [413] 

Cream Tartar, one and half ounces; Sulph. Potass., 
half ounce; Pulv. Squill, two drachms; Tartar emetic, 
one grain. Mix. A teaspoonful, three or four times a 
day. 

The last two prescriptions are sometimes given. 



Bronchocele, Goitre, or Big Neck. 
This is a swelling or enlargement of the glands of the 



196 AYEIVS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

frontal part of the neck. It may be very slight, or it may 
become very unsightly. There is no pain or tenderness 
of the part, nor is the general health impaired in conse- 
quence of this condition, but the tumor may so increase 
in size as to impede respiration to a certain extent. 
Upon its first appearance it is soft, and may be quickly 
cured, but later, it becomes very hard and will not then 
always yield to medication. It is common in mountain 
ous regions, and is especially so in Switzerland. 



$ [414] 

Paint the Goitre daily with Tincture of Iodine, 
or daily apply an ointment made of Iodide Potass, 
pulverized, half ounce, and lard, one ounce, well 
mixed, and give : — 



R [415] 

Co. Syrup Sarsaparilla, eight ounces; Iodide Potass., 
half ounce. Mix. Dose, a teaspoonful three times 
daily. Or use Stillingia, etc. See " Alteratives." 



9 [416] 

It may be cured by Fluoric Acid, taken internally. 
Begin with fifteen drops of a half per cent dilution, of 
the acid, three times a day, and if necessary, increase the 
dose to twenty, thirty or even to fifty drops. Its results 
are quite remarkable even in cases that have resisted Io- 
dine, Bromine, Iron, etc. It cures in almost every case. 



REMEDIES FOR WORMS. 

B [417] 

Santonin; Hydrarg. Sub. mur., of each half a graiD. 
Repeat if necessary. 



3 [418] 

The following is a reliable remedy : — 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 197 

Chloroform, one drachm ; Castor oil, one ounce ; Cro- 
ton oil, one drop. Mix well. Dose, from half teaspoon- 
ful to two teaspoonfuls. It causes the rapid expulsion 
of worms (lumbrocoides) . 



Foe Tape-Worm. 
B [500] 

01. Filicis maris, half drachm; Syrup Tolu, twenty- 
five drops. Mix. Take half of this at one time. 



OR 

3 [501] 

Fluid extract Filicis maris, one drachm; Simple 
Syrup, twelve and a half drachms. Mix. Take in one 
dose, and follow in two hours, with an ounce of castor 
oil. 



B [419] 

Pumpkin seeds, twenty drachms, sugar, three 
drachms ; eth. ext , Male Fern, two drachms ; decoct. 
Pomegranate rad, ten ounces. Mix. Give in four doses 
with fifteen minutes interval. 



OR 

B [420] 

Kef rain from supper and breakfast, and at 8 A. m., 
take one third part of 200 minced pumpkin seeds — hav- 
ing removed the shells by hot water. At 9 A. m., take 
one third part; at 10 a. m., the remaining third; and 
at 11 a. m., take an ounce of castor oil. Often effect- 
ual. 



OR 

S [421] 

Salicylic Acid, twelve grains ; follow with an ounce of 
castor oil. 



198 A TUB'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

3 [422] 

Santonin is insoluble in water and weak acids, but is 
soluble in tbe gastric juice ; as a result, the drug instead 
of passing into the intestine to destroy the parasite by- 
direct contact, is absorbed into the blood. An oily solu- 
tion of Santonin passes through the stomach unchanged, 
and exerts its effect upon the intestinal worms ; hence 
oil is the best vehicle for administration. In adults it 
may be best given in a dessert spoonful of castor oil. It 

also rapidly destroys worms when injected into the rec- 
tum. 

The Oleo-resin of male fern is an excellent and never 
failing remedy for tape-worm, if given with castor oil in- 
stead of following by castor-oil — the usual practice. 
The object is to bring the extract, undigested in contact 
with the worm. Oleo-resin of male fern is apt to de- 
range the stomach, and when enveloped in the oil, is 
likely to pass it more rapidly. The unpleasant taste 
may be disguised by using large capsules. It is advisa- 
ble to use castor oil on the preceding day. 

The dose of the Fluid extract Male Fern is one or two 
teaspoonfuls. 



FOR THE HAIR. 

To Prevent the Hair From Falling. 

3 [423] 

Liq. Ammon. fort. ; Oil Amygd. ; Chloroformi, of each, 
one drachm; Spirits Vini rect., vel. Rosemary, five 
drachms; Oil limonis, to flavor. Mix. Rub on the 
scalp after thorough friction by brushing. May be di- 
luted, or used with due caution. 



A Good Hair Wash. 
# [424] 
Tinct. Benzoin Co., two drachms; tinct. Canthari- 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 199 

des, two drachms; Castor oil, six ounces; oil Berga- 
mot, one drachm; oil Cassia or Verbena, fifteen drops; 
strong Alcohol, nine and a half ounces. Mix. Apply 
twice a week. 



S [425] 

Castor oil, one and a quarter pounds ; Alcohol, (strong, ) 
one and a quarter pints; Cantharides, two drachms; 
Oil Bergamot, one and a quarter drachms ; Attar Rose, 
ten drops. Mix. Let stand a few days ; filter ; apply 
twice a week. 



For Removing Hair. 
3 [426] 

Slaked Lime, two drachms; Bi-carb. Soda, three 
drachms ; Lard, two ounces. Mix. Apply. 



Anothek. 
3 [427] 

Slaked Lime, four ounces; Orris Pulv., one and a half 
ounces. Mix. Apply, aDd wash off when dry. 



OR 

$ [428] 

Slaked Lime, one ounce; Bi-carb. Potass., two 
ounces ; Pulv. Charcoal, one drachm. Mix. Apply and 
wash off when dry. Keep in well-stopped bottles. 



3 [429] 

A good domestic preventive for falling hair, is to 
wash the scalp frequently with cold " sage tea." 



200 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

For Dandruff. 
3 [430] 

Sulphur, one ounce; water, one quart. When the 
liquid is clear, apply to the scalp once daily. 



WHOOPING COUGH. 

S [431] 

Potassi. Bromidi, half drachm; Sodii Bromidi, one 
drachm; Ammonii Bromidi, half drachm; Syrup Chlo- 
ral, one and a half ounces; Aqua dest., two ounces, 
Mix. One dessert spoonful in a glass of milk, to which 
the yolk of an egg has been added, evening and morn- 
ing. 



3 [432] 

The Fluid extract Colts-foot is a good expectorant in 
this ailment. Dose, thirty to sixty drops. 



3 [433] 

Mix the following : One lemon, sliced ; half pint Flax- 
seed ; two ounces honey, and one quart water, and sim- 
mer — not boil — four hours. When cool, strain, and if 
there is less than a pint of the mixture, add water. 
Dose, one tablespoonful, four times a day, and also, one 
after each severe paroxysm of coughing. Will cure in 
four days, if given early in the disease. 



$ [434] 

Crush a teacupful of Sunflower seeds ; put into a quart 
of water, and simmer to a pint, keeping it closely cov- 
ered ; then add half pint brandy, and one pound loaf su- 
gar. Bottle for use. Dose, from a few drops, for an in- 
fant, to a teaspoonful for a child of 12 years. In severe 
cases, give once in two hours, till it affords relief. 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 201 

Inhalation for Whooping Cough. 

B |435] 

In Whooping Cough, in the last stage, that is — after 
the third week, put an ounce of the strongest liquid am- 
monia into a gallon of boiling water, in an open pan; 
the steam kept up by a hot brick put into the water and 
ammonia; the pan placed in the middle of the room into 
which the patient is brought, as the steam is passing off ; 
used in the evening for three or four days, it will ter- 
minate the malady. 



3 [436] 

The inhalation of Carbolate of Soda is regarded as a 
specific in this affection, curing in from ten to fourteen 
days. 



The following prescriptions are often employed with 
success : — 

$ [437] 

Ipecac, three grains; Precipitated Sulphur, forty 
grains ; ext. Hyoscyamus, six grains. Mix. Divide into 
twelve powders. One to be taken every three or four 
hours. 



3 [438] 

Pulv. Belladonna rad., five grains; Co. Ipecac powder, 
ten grains; Precipitated sulphur, half drachm; sugar, 
forty grains. Mix. Make twenty powders ; one every 
three hours for a child 3 or 4 years old. 



$ [439] 

Pulv. alum, twenty-five grains; ext. Cicuta, twelve 
grains; Syrup red poppies, two drachms; Spearmint 
water, three ounces. Mix. One and a half teaspoonfuls 
every six hours, in cases of cliildren 3 or 4 years old. 



202 AYEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH 

B [440] 

Tinct. Lobelia and Syrup of squill, equal parts, is 
often given in 20-drop doses, as an expectorant. 



Liniment for the Spine. 

$ [441] 

Olive oil, four ounces; oil of amber, two drachms; 
oil of Rosemary, two drachms. Mix. Apply, after fric- 
tion every second day. 



3 [442] 

It is stated by an eminent physician of Vienna that by 
putting twenty drops of the oil of Turpentine on a hand- 
kerchief, holding it before the face, and taking about 
forty deep inspirations, to be repeated thrice daily, 
marked relief succeeds in cases of laryngeal catarrh. It 
is quite as effectual with infants as with older children. 



B [443] 

The Oil of Peppermint is a very effective anodyne ap- 
plication in allaying neuralgic symptoms. The oil is 
painted over the affected part, as often as needful. 



B [444] 

The common May -weed blossoms in alcohol, is similar, 
and equal in pain-relieving properties to Tinct. of Ar- 
nica. 



Blackberry Cordial. 

B [445] 

Use half bushel blackberries. Cook till well scalded. 
Strain and press out all the juice, which is to be put in a 
kettle with the following (in a bag) : — 

Allspice, quarter of a pound; Cinnamon bark, two 



MISCELLANEOUS RECIPES. 203 

ounces; Cloves, two ounces; two nutmegs. Add one 
pound loaf sugar to every quart of juice — more if prefer- 
red — and cook slowly 10 or 15 minutes. Remove from 
the fire ; let it cool a little, and add one pint pure brandy 
to three pints of juice. This is excellent for diarrhoea. 
Dose, a tablespoonful two, three, or four times a day. 



A Valuable Eemedy. 

Golden Seal is an indispensable remedy. Taken inter- 
nally in Dyspepsia, it is remedial in almost all cases; and 
its great value as a gargle, or for injection, in chronic 
inflammations is recognized by all physicians. The color- 
less Fluid Golden Seal diluted with three times its vol- 
ume of water, forms one of the best local remedies for 
gonorrhoea and gleet. It may be combined with Lis- 
terine, diluted in the same way. It cures in almost all 
cases. It is equally useful in chronic pharyngitis, 
also in laryngitis and bronchitis— used as a gargle or 
spray. 

Where there is indigestion, with distress, eructations 
of gas, or vomiting, Golden Seal gives prompt relief. 
Dose, from ten to twenty drops. In diarrhoea of chil- 
dren, it is an excellent remedy, especially if combined 
with pepsin and bismuth, as in the following prescrip- 
tion. 



3 [446] 

Fluid Golden Seal, (colorless) ten drops ; Am. Saccha- 
rated pepsin, and sub-nitrate bismuth, of each five grains. 
Mix. Taken at one time; may be repeated several 
times daily. 



204 AYEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

This is equally useful in Dyspepsia of adults, — the 
above dose just after each meal. 



Lactopeptine is one of the very best remedial agents 
Imown to the profession, for Dyspepsia, and for stomach 
and bowel disorders due to indigestion. Dose, three 
grains after each meal. 



Digestion of Food. 

Disordered digestion may depend upon insufficient 
mastication of food ; altered blood supply ; nervous de- 
bility ; alteration of the Saliva ; deficient action in the 
gastric juice ; pancreatic indigestion ; intestinal indiges- 
tion; and torpidity of the liver. People should take 
time enough to eat and masticate food, not eat upon the 
anaconda plan. If they ignore nature's dental economy, 
Dyspepsia will surely sooner or later ensue. They must 
take ample exercise in the pure air and sunlight, or the 
circulation of the blood, as well as its quality, will be 
impeded and impaired, and the nervous system will 
succumb to depressing influences. If they use tobacco, 
intoxicants or opium, the saliva of the mouth, and 
gastric juice of the stomach will be vitiated, and if they 
eat unsuitable foods, or unsuitably prepared foods, or 
employ harmful medication, the digestive function will 
certainly sooner or later become disordered, and they 
will know by experience how much misery a person can 
endure. 

Food may be classified under three divisions : the Sac- 
charine class, embracing substances composed of oxygen, 



DIGESTION OF FOOD. 205 

hydrogen, and carbon, resembling sugar in composition, 
and readily convertible into it, — such as starch, gum, 
etc. ; the Oleagenous or fatty class, with a greater pro- 
portion of hydrogen and carbon than oxygen, with ab- 
sence of nitrogen, — including vegetable oils and animal 
fats; the Albuminous class, containing a large propor- 
tion of nitrogen, comprising animal and vegetable sub- 
stances. 

The Saccharine matters taken as food do not directly 
form part of any animal tissue, but are decomposed in 
their passage through the circulation, and are employed 
in nutrition. Starch is converted into sugar in the pro- 
cess of digestion, and the sugar formed is decomposed 
and appropriated. Articles of the albuminous class 
serve not only for nourishing the body, but for the 
maintenance of animal heat, by their decomposition. 

The saliva of the mouth has very much to do with di- 
gestion. Its quantity varies according to the continua- 
tion of mastication, a longer or shorter time. 

The normal and characteristic secretion of the stom- 
ach is the gastric juice, which contains four per cent of 
solid matter, the greater part being pepsin, united with 
an acid. Although the food has been acted upon by the 
saliva of the mouth, and the gastric juice of the stom- 
ach, the process of digestion is not completed. The pan- 
creas supplies the pancreatic juice, sometimes called "ab- 
dominal saliva," as the structure of the organ resembles 
that of the salivary glands. The pancreatine, which is 
the active principle of the pancreatic juice, acts upon 
fats. 



206 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Fatty degeneration and atrophy of the pancreas or 
spleen occurs in some cases of diabetes ; and enlargement 
of the organ often follows intermittent fever. 

A long and complicated series of actions is required 
to accomplish the digestion of food. Starch is acted 
upon in the mouth, in the duodenum or " second stom- 
ach " — by the salivary and pancreatic juices, which are 
almost identical, and along the entire course of the ali- 
mentary canal. Albuminous matters are attacked in the 
stomach and in the small intestines, but the agents act- 
ing are not identical. The bile is not known to possess 
any ferment action, but it assists in emulsifying and pro- 
moting the absorption of fatty matters. The enteric juice 
of the intestines combines the activity and digestive 
power of all the other secretions, starch, fat, and albumi- 
nous substances being all digested by it. 



-^*H«^ 



A CHAPTER FOR MOTHERS. 

Childhood's Second Summer. 

►jes'HE Second Summer of Childhood is a period of the 

Iu«jj greatest solicitude to every intelligent mother; 

and little wonder is it, when we contemplate the 

alarming rate of Infant mortality, and realize the 

fact that the death-rate, as fearful as it is, in this country, 

is gradually increasing. 

The season when Nature arrays herself in holiday at- 
tire — the gorgeous bloom of beautiful, balmy Summer, — 
brings in its train the heaviest sorrow the heart can 
know. That its roses are most liable to be exchanged 
for lilies and immortelles, and little flowerets, to deck the 
caskets of the sweetest buds of all, is the heart's experi- 
ence of tens of thousands of loving mothers all over the 
land. 

That a more general and thorough knowledge of the 
Infant constitution, its requirements, and susceptibilities, 
with a better knowledge of physiology and hygiene, would 
tend in a very great degree, to diminish Infant mortality, 
is certain. The death-rate of children under five years, 
in the great cities of America, ranges between forty-three 
and fifty per cent of the whole number of deaths. In 

(207) 



208 AYEE>S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Southern cities, the rate is still greater. In large Euro- 
pean cities, there is a constant diminution of Infant mor- 
tality, while the vital statistics show that there is a cor- 
responding increase in our own country. It is ten per 
cent greater among us than in the chief cities of northern 
Europe, the climate of which is not more conducive to 
health than that of America. We find diseases of the 
digestive organs even more fatal than those of the Re- 
spiratory System. The former are the product of the 
summer, as the latter are of the winter months. 

Cholera Infantum, which is the general scourge of In- 
fantile life, more especially in our large cities, is almost 
confined to children during their first and second year, 
and it is this, perhaps more than all other ailments, 
which causes the great disparity between the rates of 
mortality in children under jive, and between five and 
ten years. 

The period of the greatest prevalence of infantile diar- 
rhoea coincides exactly with the time during which the 
process of dentition, or teething, is going on most actively. 
More than half of the number of cases of diarrhoea in 
children occur between the ages of six months and two 
years. The older writers on medicine who observed this 
fact, attributed the disturbance of the bowels to a sort of 
sympathy between the intestinal canal and the gums, 
swollen and irritated by the approach of the teeth to 
their surface. It must be borne in mind that there exists, 
during the period of teething, a more abiding cause, 
which strongly predisposes to its occurrence. All parts 
of the digestive canal, and of its dependencies are under- 
going an active evolution to fit them for the proper assim- 



CHILDHOOD'S SECOND SUMMER. 209 

ilation of the varied food on which the child will soon 
have to subsist. 

Just as the salivary glands are now being developed, 
and pour out saliva in abundance, so the whole 
glandular system of the intestines assumes a rapidity 
of growth, and an activity of function, which under 
the influence of comparatively slight exciting causes, 
may. pass the just limits of health. In too many 
instances, causes fully adequate to excite diarrhoea, are 
abundantly supplied, in the excessive quantity, or un- 
suitable quality of the food with which the infant is sup- 
plied ; for it is forgotten that its condition is one of 
transition, in which something more than ordinary care 
is needed, while the profuse secretion from the irritated 
glands is regarded as the result of a kind of safety-valve 
arrangement, whereby nature seeks to moderate the con- 
stitutional excitement attendant upon teething. 

Here we have the origin of infantile diarrhoea, an abid- 
ing, ever present, predisposing cause, always ready to be 
quickened into activity, by innumerable excitants. Errors 
of diet, or depressing and painful emotions, as anger, fear, 
grief, etc., of the mother ; food, improper in quality or 
quantity ; certain medicines and overheated occupations 
on the part of the mother or nurse, and similar errors of 
diet, changes of temperature, and constitutional tenden- 
cies on the part of the infant, are ever ready and fre- 
quently occurring exciting causes. 

This condition of transition, which the teething infant 
exhibits, is everywhere impressed upon animated nature. 
In the human family, we have not only the great transi- 
tion state of the alimentary and digestive systems at th3 

14 



210 AYEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

* 
period of teething, but later, other transitions. In the 

healthy condition of the human body, the powers of nat- 
ure are ample to carry on all necessary processes during 
the periods of evolution incident to the full development 
of the system ; but in the artificial and morbid condition 
in which a large portion of infantile humanity is found, 
slight obstructions bring the machinery to a dead stand, 
or waste its powers in ineffectual attempts to continue its 
action. 

Premising, then, that the great predisposing cause of 
infantile diarrhoea is the state of evolution which the 
digestive system and its dependencies are undergoing, 
during the period of teething, the question becomes one 
of comparative simplicity, and the only rational plan of 
treatment is to allay that irritation of the organs which is 
exhibited in vomiting, and purging, first by the removal 
of all extraneous sources of disturbance, such as food, 
improper in quality and quantity ; by protecting the skin 
from too sudden and frequent changes of temperature ; by 
sedatives to subdue the excitement which the foregoing 
causes may have induced, and which in the enfeebled con- 
dition produced by the transition state, are self-propa- 
gating; and lastly, to impart to the struggling and over- 
whelmed digestive apparatus that assistance which will 
enable it to convert food from the character of a foreign, 
and therefore irritant material, into nutriment, which will 
re-invigorate the natural forces, and enable them to ac- 
complish successfully the great and necessary evolution 
through which they are passing. 

The greatest mortality from diseases of the digestive 



CHILDHOOD'S SECOND SUMMER. 211 

system occurs during the months of June, July, August, 
September, and October, while that from affections of the 
Breathing organs takes place during the colder weather — 
especially in late autumn and early spring. The greater 
number of deaths of children occur under the age of five 
years; and of these a vast proportion during the first two 
years of fife. The diseases which sweep away the great- 
est number of the human race, are disorders of the Di- 
gestive, Respiratory and Nervous Systems, and these owe 
their fatality largely to errors in diet, as well as to the 
extreme vicissitudes of our climate. 

It is in our power, if we will but use the means, to 
control causes of infant mortality in a very great measure. 
No one can for a moment believe that the excessive, and 
increasing mortality, is a part of the established order of 
nature, still less can he doubt that it is the result of sec- 
ondary causes, which are in many instances, under our 
control, and which if properly heeded may be rendered 
nearly if not wholly inocuous. 

In many parts of our country, the climate is extremely 
unfavorable to human lif e during its early periods. This 
arises no more from the sudden variations, than from the 
great range of temperature. The Northern and Eastern 
States have two distinct systems of climate — an arctic 
and a tropical one, and the inhabitants ought, conse- 
quently, to adopt two systems of hygiene adapted to these 
extremes ; more especially ought this rule to be observed 
in the management of young children, whose constitutions 
are not inured to hardships and exposure, and who would, 
therefore, succumb to the operation of causes which 
would scarcely be felt by those of a more advanced age. 



212 AYEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

During those months in which we are exposed to a trop- 
ical heat, a vegetable diet, chiefly, would be far more 
healthful, than one of rich, animal food, especially for 
children, whose digestive organs are so liable to derange- 
ment and disease. 

During the first and second year, when the child is 
undergoing the process of teething, the stomach and 
bowels are highly irritable ; slight errors in diet, during 
the hot season induce diarrhoea, or Cholera Infantum, 
and if the infant has been weaned, small indeed will be 
the chance of recovery under the ordinary treatment. In 
by far the greater number of such cases, the disease is 
caused by a too stimulating diet — of animal food, by 
which digestion becomes, at first impaired and then de- 
stroyed. 

If mothers are ignorant of the nature of the infant's 
constitution, — of those laws and conditions under which 
its functions are intended to act ; if they know not how 
it is affected by heat, by cold, by moisture, or by any of 
those numerous agencies to which it is constantly liable 
to be exposed, — they will not be able to protect it, when 
least capable of resistance, against those numerous unto- 
ward influences to which it is or may be subjected, and 
which are in few countries more numerous and powerful 
than in our own. Not until mothers become well in- 
formed upon such matters, can we hope for a decline in 

infant mortality. 

• 

Early Infancy. 

The child should receive nourishment within twelve, 
or at most eighteen, hours after birth. When there is a 



EAMLY INFANCY, 213 

decided inability to suckle the child, and a wet nurse is 
to be engaged, there are several matters which require 
the most careful consideration. 

The nurse should be as nearly as possible of the same 
age as the mother, and the more nearly she resembles her 
in constitutional peculiarities, the more suitable will she 
be for entering upon the charge. The nurse should be 
of sound physical health, and of commendable moral and 
mental qualifications. The child of the nurse should be 
of the same age, or nearly so, as the child to whom she 
is called. The quality of the milk chiefly depends upon 
habits of mind and body ; the quantity varies in different 
persons, in correspondence with age, constitution, etc. 

A mother who is also the nurse, has a double claim 
upon her, and a two-fold motive to stimulate her in the 
observance of the laws of health. Her own immediate 
welfare is indissolubly united with that of her child ; 
every transgression on her part inflicts suffering upon 
her infant ; and an unhealthy child generally brings af- 
fliction upon an entire family. 

The milk of the mother is the most appropriate food 
which can be given to a newly-born infant. When a 
mother has a sufficiency of milk, and is otherwise able to 
perform the duty, she is called upon by the voice of nat- 
ure to undertake it. It is a duty which may be attended 
with some degree of inconvenience, but this is amply 
compensated by the delightful feelings which are de- 
veloped in the course of the nursing period, and the 
pleasing consciousness of performing a duty of the great- 
est importance to one in whom she feels the deepest in- 
terest. The multiplicity of little attentions required by 



214 A TUB'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

the infant, can only be rendered by an intelligence and 
interest scarcely to be expected from the hired nurse. 
• If a child is to be brought up by hand, cow's milk — al- 
ways from the same animal — diluted one third, at least, 
with warm water, or goat's milk, diluted, is the only 
nourishment that can, with any degree of safety, be given 
during the earliest months of infancy. 

There is no doubt that the easiest method of stopping 
the baby's crying is to stop his mouth, but it is not judi- 
cious to pursue this com se, for overfeeding, as well as 
improper food or harmful medication, is one of the chief 
causes of the ailments of children. In two months, the 
mother may pretty nearly ascertain how often the infant 
requires nourishment, and it will greatly promote her own 
convenience, and the child's comfort, if something like 
regularity be established. Habit very soon asserts its in- 
fluence. Every three hours is the average number of 
times a child from two to four months old requires to 
nurse. A good sleeper may, during the night, rest six 
hours together. It is desirable to give a child the habit 
of sleeping throughout the night. As the power of 
observation increases, and muscular strength induces exer- 
cise, the infant sleeps less by day and more by night. 

After six months a gradual and cautious approach to 
solid diet may be made by a slight addition of farinaceous 
food with milk. Sugar often becomes acid in the stom- 
ach, and therefore should be used sparingly. The first 
change of food sometimes disorders the system, hence, 
two or three days should be allowed for the experiment 
and if the diet does not agree with the. child, some other 



WEANING. 215 

form of the most digestible farinaceous food may be 
cautiously tried. Should all be found equally improper, 
weak chicken or veal broth, beef-tea thickened with ar- 
row-root may be tried. Begin by slow degrees, giving a 
small quantity once in twenty-four hours, and that in the 
morning. Food should be of the temperature of breast- 
milk ; when too warm, or too cold, it weakens digestion. 
Two circumstances govern the progress to solid food, — 
the appearance of the teeth, and the increase of muscular 
power. Mastication and exercise are necessary when 
strong nourishment is given. 



Weaning. 

Physicians generally are of the opinion that the time 
of weaning should be regulated by the appearance of the 
teeth, but in different children, even of the same family, 
the period varies considerably. There may be circum- 
stances rendering it desirable to wean the infant, even if the 
teeth have not appeared. The health of the child, and 
the season of the year, and also the mother's health are 
always to be considered. If the child be strong, and the 
mother weak, weaning becomes an imperative necessity. 
If the infant be strong, and after eight or nine months, 
likely to thrive equally well upon food supplied by art, 
the mother may be warranted in weaning, but it must be 
remembered that the health of an infant depends mainly 
upon its diet. 

It is advisable to avoid weaning in severe weather, and 
to do it gradually, giving the breast less frequently, and 
discontinuing it at night. 



216 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Diet after Weaning. 

The diet of a child after weaning must be regulated by 
the strength of the digestive powers, by the teeth, and by 
the muscular development of the child. Upon the prin- 
ciple that diet should assimilate with the system, the 
gradual change from the soft, lymphatic forms of infancy, 
to the firmer condition of childhood dictates a gradual 
change in the aliment given. 

If a child thrives on farinaceous food, milk and light 
broth, there is no need of change from such foods. 
Something also depends upon growth. There are chil- 
dren whose rapid increase of stature, and incessant activ- 
ity, produces a waste, which calls not only for frequent 
supplies of food, but also for food of a more nourishing 
quality than necessary under other conditions. With 
such children, animal food once a day — always supposing 
the teeth are in a condition to masticate it — may be nec- 
essary ; but if a high degree of excitability, a violent tem- 
per and impatience prevail, nourishing food must be given 
with discrimination; the mother will ascertain whether 
these qualities are increased or diminished thereby, and 
regulate the diet accordingly. 

It is a matter of common observation that when an in- 
fant is weaned during the summer, it is extremely liable 
to be attacked with Cholera Infantum, especially if kept 
in the city during that season. The babe should never 
be weaned in late spring or summer ; autumn is the best 
time for that change. 

The most suitable articles of diet after weaning are 
bread with milk, milk boiled with rice, soft-boiled eggs, 



DIET AFTER WEANING. 217 

baked potatoes with milk, oatmeal gruel, plain rice or 
"bread pudding, arrow-root, tapioca, sago, simple meat 
broths mixed with crumbs of bread or grated crackers ; 
and after a time, a more solid diet may be gradually 
substituted. Till the age of puberty preparations of milk 
and the farinaceous vegetables should constitute the prin- 
cipal diet. 

A lymphatic, fat, white-looking child, whose mind 
and temper are sluggish and indifferent, should not 
be fed wholly on fluid or soft diet — more concentrated 
food will probably correct the temperament. In all cases, 
the state of the bowels, of the skin, and of the temper 
will indicate whether the food nourishes too much, or too 
little. Fat is no indication of health. A very active child, 
after three years of age, is rarely very fat, but the muscles 
may be large ; their size, compared with that of the bones, 
and with the age and growth, determines whether the 
child be properly nourished or otherwise. Emaciation is 
a certain indication of imperfect nutrition, — often a con- 
sequence of overfeeding as much as underfeeding ; for if 
the digestion be overtasked by quantity or quality, the 
chyle — or flesh-making portion of foods — is vitiated, and 
nutrition is insufficient, while if the supply is not in pro- 
portion to the waste and growth, there is a deficiency in 
the formation of all the tissues, the bones remaining soft, 
the muscles flaccid and shrunken, the skin covered with 
eruptions, the nerves weak, yet so excitable that all im- 
pressions are painful, and a condition of fretfulness, or 
moping inactivity prevails. Scrofula and Consumption 
are caused both by overfeeding, and want of sufficient 
nourishment. 



218 A YEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

A soft, clear, pliant skin accompanies a healthy action 
of its functions. It is not transparent in all cases, be- 
cause complexion makes a difference both in color and 
thickness. Its condition is better ascertained by its text- 
ure, than by its hue. A dry, harsh, scurfy skin indicates 
something wrong in the alimentary canal, that should be 
corrected by the diet, or an inactive state of the skin it- 
self, to be overcome by exercise and warm bathing. 

The temper is a very sure index of health. Cheerful- 
ness, mirth and freedom from anxiety, are the peculiar 
conditions of early childhood, — the past and the future 
are nothing, the present everything. 

The general rules for diet after weaning, are mild, nour- 
ishing food, given at regular intervals of time — the quan- 
tity to be more animalized as the waste of the system is 
increased by growth and exercise ; observation to be made 
of the effect of any new substance, such as fruit, meat, etc., 
that it may be discontinued if hurtful. Highly seasoned 
dishes, fried and salted meats, pastry, uncooked vegetables, 
unripe fruits, wines and rich cake, are to be wholly 
avoided, mastication to be insisted upon, and no viands to 
be eaten in large quantities, while nothing disagreeable 
should be forced upon the appetite. Whenever there is a 
disinclination for food, the feeling should be indulged, 
since it denotes a state of the stomach in which food 
would be injurious. 

Tempting the appetite is physically pernicious, while 
morally it is the first step to sensual indulgence. Chil- 
dren require to eat more frequently than adults. A 
healthy, active child of two years needs food every three 
or four hours, while awake, provided the stomach be in 



DIET AFTER WEANING. 219 

proper condition to receive it, but continual eating allows 
no time for the repose which the digestive apparatus re- 
quires, and causes disease and establishes a bad habit. 

Variety is also desirable ; not that children should eat 
of several dishes at one meal, but they cannot be fed ju- 
diciously every day alike. Farinaceous food is capable of 
great variations. Animal food given to a child should 
be of tender fibre, cooked in the best way, and eaten with 
a due proportion of salt, vegetables and bread. An ill- 
dressed dish is not only unpalatable, but indigestible. 
New bread is very unwholesome ; it swells in the stomach, 
causing distention and oppression. Sweetmeats and con- 
fections when habitually eaten, become acid in the stom- 
ach, and destroy appetite for plain food. 

If an infant be fed only when hungry, instead of when 
uneasy, and as it grows older, eats upon the same prin- 
ciple, with such habitual regard to neatness, order and 
good cookery as shall accustom it to discriminate be- 
tween what is fit, and what is unfit, wholesome and un- 
wholesome, there will be no undue value attached to food. 

The health of mankind, in every stage and condition 
of life, depends upon temperance and proper diet, on 
suitable clothing, on cleanliness, and protection against 
severities and inclemencies of weather. It has been 
wisely said that from infancy to old age, life is continu- 
ally supported by food, and health is mainly preserved by 
suitable diet; for although air, exercise and clothing are 
severally, when properly ordered, conducive to health, 
they do not affect the living body so constantly as daily 
food. To errors in diet, we may attribute a very great 
share of the excessive mortality among children. 



220 A YE IPS MONITOR OF HEALTH 

Rearing Infants by Hand. 

The first natural sustenance of infants is the mothers' 
milk. This contains the proper elements for the main- 
tenance and growth of the helpless young. Nature does 
not afford, nor can art supply any substitute as suitable. 
To this aliment the infant should be strictly confined 
until teething has made considerable progress. Every 
person is, or should be aware, that it is extremely haz- 
ardous to attempt to rear an infant by hand, and if we 
consult the records of foundling hospitals, where such 
mode is generally practiced, we shall find infant mortality 
ranging from forty up to ninety per cent. 

With the understanding of the facts, women do not 
always profit by it. As soon as the little one is able to 
walk alone, or sit erect in a chair, to which he is secured, 
he is placed at the table, which is laden with every vari- 
ety of eatables, and is permitted to indulge the freedom 
of his will in the selection of such food as seems most 
inviting — whether it be sweetmeats, cake, pastry, or an- 
imal substances. No restriction is imposed, either as to 
quantity or quality — jellies, puddings, fruit, pork, ham, 
smoked beef, coffee, tea, beer, cider, each or all are freely 
allowed; and thus in a short time, the digestive organs 
become deranged, and wholly unable to assimilate any 
kind of food; the child suffers from disorder of the 
bowels — becoming weak and emaciated, is dosed by the 
fond mother, till at length convulsions or cholera infan- 
tum rescues the sufferer from all further misery. This 
is a true history of a large proportion of the number of 
children who die, under the age of two years. 



REARING INFANTS BY HAND. 221 

It is during the second year that children suffer mo&t 
from teething ; and the second summer, especially in our 
large cities, is a critical time, and proverbially hazardous 
to the child ; but when the food has been properly regu- 
lated, the little one generally passes through the period 
of dentition with little injury. Experience, as well as 
observation shows that when a mode of management is 
early adopted in accordance with the nature and wants 
of the infant constitution, not only will the dangers of 
teething be diminished, but those of all other diseases. 

It is astonishing how soon an indiscretion in feeding 
during the first year will excite serious disorder of the 
alimentary canal, or fatal convulsions. A large propor- 
tion of the milk supplied to the inhabitants of large cit- 
ies, is the product of cows improperly fed, and constantly 
kept in close, ill-ventilated stables. Such milk is poison 
to young children, and is a prolific cause of disease and 
death. The jaundice of infants is generally the result 
of gastric and duodenal irritation, caused by some sub- 
stance, for the digestion of which the stomach is not 
adapted. The child frequently suffers from colic — some- 
times for weeks, caused by improper nourishment, and 
yet the disturbing cause is unsuspected. If the child 
has stamina enough to withstand such state of gastric 
irritation, it may at length become inured to its unnat- 
ural food, and appear to thrive, but more commonly it 
will fall a victim to jaundice, diarrhcea, Cholera Infantum, 
convulsions, scrofula or some other dangerous malady. 
The great and universal errors in relation to infant diet 
are, that it is too stimulating and too abundant. More 
than twice the amount of nourishment is generally al- 



222 A TEH'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

lowed, than is necessary to satisfy the wants of the sys- 
tem, and that of a quality better adapted to the digestive 
powers of an adult, than of an infant. In cities, where 
children breathe foul air, and take but little physical ex- 
ercise, such a diet soon clogs the digestive apparatus, 
deranges the functions of all the organs, and predisposes 
to the whole catalogue of inflammatory and epidemic 
infantile diseases. An abundance of animal food more 
frequently causes debility than an increase of strength 
of young children, those who eat the least of it are the 
most healthy. 

Diet of the Nurse. 

In general the diet of the nurse should consist chiefly 
of fresh beef or mutton, plainly roasted or boiled, and 
occasionally soups with a due proportion of vegetables. 
Rich gravies, salted and smoked meats, and all highly 
seasoned viands should be avoided, as also all acid fruits, 
pickles and similar articles ; for these speedily affect the 
milk and consequently the infant dependent upon her. 
The only drink proper for the nurse is water or tea. No 
coffee, or fermented or distilled liquor should be taken. 
Thousands of children die annually from convulsions, 
etc., induced by these beverages taken by the nurse. 



Sleep. 

Young children require much sleep. Physical comfort 
is all that is needed to promote it, and this is to be ob- 
tained by whatever secures health. On laying an infant 



SLEEP. 223 

down, it should be ascertained that the feet, hands and 
face are comfortably warm, that every part of the body 
is supported, and that the position of the limbs is not 
cramped ; the head and shoulders raised a little by the 
pillow sloping gradually to the bed. Blankets are better 
than sheets. The covering should be so arranged that 
while there is sufficient space to breathe freely, the face 
is kept warm. Infants should lie alone, as far as it can 
be done without exposure to cold. Darkness is favorable 
to repose. Mothers must expect their rest to be dis- 
turbed, until the exercise and fatigue of the day shall in- 
crease the necessity and desire for night-sleep. 

A child should never be kept awake during the day, 
with the idea that it will rest better by night, by so do- 
ing. Overfatigue causes general irritability, pains in 
the limbs, fretfulness and restlessness. For this reason, 
however apparently disinclined, when the fixed hour ar- 
rives, there should be no delay in the preparations for 
bed ; and this practice should be maintained during in- 
fancy and childhood. The habit of sleeping in the day 
is indispensable, even during the first four years, and 
longer, where there is a delicacy of constitution, or great 
activity. Sleep is the only means of giving rest to the 
system of a child, especially if in health. In warm 
weather, sleep is very acceptable to active children of 
five or six years, and frequently relieves them from great 
weariness which seems like indisposition, or causes ill- 
temper. An hour's nap often proves a safe physical and 
moral remedy, more effective than any other. 



224 AYEIVS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Clothing. 

Warmth is essential to the health of an infant ; and 
this is chiefly to be obtained through the medium of 
clothing, for in the earliest period of infancy, there is no 
muscular exercise. What renders warmth by artificial 
means so necessary is the fact that infants having a lan- 
guid circulation, produce little animal heat, and easily 
part with what they do produce, and hence are most 
liable to suffer far more than do adults from the same 
exposure. The clothing of children from October to 
May, in our northern climate, should protect the chest, 
shoulders and arms, and this whether out-doors or in the 
house. Constructed as most houses are, an equable 
temperature through all parts of it, can seldom be se- 
cured, and hence every change from the nursery or sit- 
ting-room to the entry-hall, or to another room without 
fire, or to an open door, subjects the child insufficiently 
clad to be suddenly chilled, -and in consequence, to be 
attacked by croup or inflammation of the lungs. 

A certain degree of warmth is essential to the perform- 
ance of the various functions of the organism, and pro- 
tection to the skin assists materially in maintaining this 
warmth, which should be sufficient to keep up the in- 
sensible perspiration, yet not so high as to produce sensi- 
ble perspiration. The latter state relaxes the general 
system and renders it liable to be affected by cold 
draughts, or changes in the weather, while it exhausts 
the strength, and by increasing the capillary circulation, 
deprives other organs of their needful supply. Clothing, 
therefore, must be regulated by the age of the child, and 



CLOTHING. 225 

by the season. Lightness, as well as warmth, is requi- 
site in all articles of dress. Flannel should be worn 
throughout the year, but may be thinner in summer 
than in winter. 

Looseness is another requisite in an infant's dress, for 
there should be a free circulation of air between the skin 
and the clothes, as well as a slight friction upon the sur- 
face. All confinement distresses, and when it amounts 
to tightness it may cause deformity, before the evil is 
suspected. Full room should be allowed for the increase 
in size which is continually and rapidly going on. How- 
ever warm the clothing, infants should not be carried 
abroad in cold weather ; their lungs cannot bear a low 
temperature. An infant usually falls asleep when so 
carried abroad; cold increases the disposition to sleep, 
and renders it dangerous ; while no good can be derived 
from the external air, since common prudence dictates 
that the whole person must be completely enveloped. 

Without sufficient warmth, there cannot be healthy 
functional action, and without such action, the sound 
formation of the various parts of the frame will be ob- 
structed. By disregard of this rule, the foundation of 
glandular and pulmonary diseases is often laid. Infants 
should, therefore, be sufficiency though not cumbrously 
clad. The observation of the best informed physicians 
attest the fact that much suffering, great increase of dis- 
ease, and an augmented mortality among children, are 

the consequences of injudicious exposure to cold. 

15 



226 AYEB'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

Bathing. 

Cold water is objectionable for bathing infants, r.s it 
tends to drive the blood from the surface, and over- 
stimulate the internal organs, the immediate consequence 
of which is often diarrhoea, and sometimes death. For 
the same reason, when infants are teething, great care 
should be taken to prevent draughts of cold air from 
coming upon them. For the first months of life, they 
can only be safely undressed beside a fire. 

After washing and drying, the skin should be rubbed 
with the hand, or a flannel glove ; this restores the circu- 
lation to the surface, and is soothing and agreeable. 
Bathing from head to foot must be repeated daily. 
Every article of clothing should be well aired before a 
fire, previous to putting it om and all flannel garments 
especially, should be carefully dried in this manner. 



Yentilation. 

The organs of respiration demand pure air, and become 
disordered, and the blood becomes vitiated by any de- 
parture from this law of life. As air that has been 
breathed has been deprived of its oxygen or vitalizing prin- 
ciple, and charged with carbonic acid, and thus rendered 
unfit for respiration, and detrimental to health, and often 
destructive to life, there should always be a means of ad- 
mitting pure air into our dwellings, and especially into 
the apartments occupied by children. Several children 
should not be placed in the same sleeping-room ; and it 
is a serious misfortune when it becomes necessary for 
persons to occupy the same room by day and night. 



VENTILATION. 227 

Bedding needs daily ventilation. Every morning, beds 
should be thrown open and freely exposed to the air, for 
considerable time. Sunlight should be admitted into the 
sleeping room, and through open windows, during the 
early part of the day. 

Sunlight exerts an important influence upon all ani- 
mated beings. It has been shown that the development 
of all animals is due to a great extent, to the agency of 
the sun, and every one must have observed that the same 
holds true in relation to the vegetable kingdom. In 
rooms in which the canary bird mopes, and flowers droop, 
the air is unfit for human beings. It is a rule which ad- 
mits of general application, that an infant, as soon as its 
eyes lose their extreme sensibility, should be freely ex- 
posed to light. The nursery should never be darkened 
by shutters nor curtains. Heated impure air has a very 
pernicious effect upon the nervous system of young chil- 
dren. They become languid, uneasy and fretful; the 
nervous energy is checked, and the functions of the en- 
tire organism become enfeebled. A constant recurrence 
of irritating causes renders them habitually ill-tempered, 
and therefore they are both physically and morally in- 
jured by breathing such air. The mother or nurse being 
subjected to the same influences, their tempers are in no 
condition to soothe the fractious little beings around 
them; mutual and increasing irritability prevails, and 
this is destructive of true maternal and filial feelings. 

As nervous sensibility predominates in early life, and 
its excess forms a factor in almost every infantile disease, 
it is of the utmost importance in the management of in- 
fants to pay attention to all those circumstances and 



228 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

agents which tend to strengthen and invigorate the nerv- 
ous system. Of these pure air is of equal importance 
with wholesome food. When a child, pent up in the 
confined and impure atmosphere of a city, has be- 
come emaciated by teething, and perhaps brought to 
death's door by cholera infantum, it is surprising to see 
with what rapidity he is restored, on removal to the pure 
air of the country. The sulphureted hydrogen gas, 
which escapes from fires of anthracite coal, is exerting a 
most deleterious influence upon the health and lives of 
infants, and young children, in all our large cities, and is 
doubtless one of the causes of the gradual increase of 
mortality among them. 

Mothers and nurses should also learn that there is 
nothing more pernicious than drugging children, upon 
every slight ailment. Because a child is fretful or com- 
plaining, it does not therefore follow that it needs medi- 
cine; it is probable that its stomach is overloaded, and 
needs abstinence, or that the nervous system is suffering 
the consequence of breathing impure air, and that the 
difficulty will quickly pass away, with proper attention to 
hygienic laws. 



Teething. 

The " milk-teeth," or teeth which appear during in- 
fancy and early childhood, are twenty in number, viz. — 
four incisors, or front teeth, two canine, or eye-teeth, and 
four molars, or double teeth in each jaw. The period at 
which they cut the gum, differs considerably in different 
children; sometimes they begin to come forth at four 



TEETHING. 229 

months, sometimes not till near a twelve-month; in some 
instances, the double teeth are delayed till the child is 
nearly three years of age. In their cutting, the teeth 
usually follow a certain order : first, the middle incisors 
of the lower jaw, and after an interval of three or four 
weeks, the corresponding upper incisors make their ap- 
pearance; but not unfrequently the whole four first ap- 
pear in the upper jaw, succeeded at intervals by the 
molars, those nearest the single teeth appearing first. 
There is a popular notion that a departure from the or- 
der, which often occurs, increases the difficulty of teeth- 
ing, but this opinion does not seem to be warranted. 

The following is the process of teething: At the time 
of birth, the teeth are lodged in their separate sockets, 
each being surrounded by a delicate and vascular mem- 
brane, which, as the tooth increases in size, becomes 
stretched and pressed upon in all directions, causing pain 
and inflammation. This pressure stimulates the absorbents 
to take away the interposing membrane and gum, and 
thus a passage is made for the tooth. One of the first 
symptoms of teething is a heat in the mouth, which is 
perceptible while nursing. Other symptoms are flowing 
of saliva, eagerness in the child to convey everything to 
the mouth, and biting and grinding the gums together. 
The flow of saliva is advantageous, — it diminishes the in- 
flammation and irritability of the gums, allays thirst, as- 
sists digestion, and lowers the feverish action of the sys- 
tem, which is generally excited by dentition. After these 
symptoms have continued for some time — the period 
being indefinite — the gums become inflamed, swollen, and 
semi-transparent, just above the points where the teeth 



230 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

appear. The saliva often flows abundantly for months 
before this occurrence. This sympathetic affection prob- 
ably denotes the hardening of the tooth, the surrounding 
membrane being irritated before the gums are affected. 
The flow of saliva is not therefore to be regarded as cer- 
tainly indicative of the immediate appearance of the teeth- 
The desire of the child to press the gums, seems instinct, 
ive, and intended to assist the absorption affected by the 
mechanical pressure of the growing teeth, and to promote 
salivation. 

Teething, in some cases, causes fever, flushing of the 
cheeks, diarrhoea, disordered condition of the urinary func- 
tion, fretfulness, disturbed sleep, sore eyes, eruptions and 
convulsions. These symptoms are by no means frequent, 
and sometimes altogether absent. In many instances, 
the teeth are cut so easily that their appearance is not 
indicated by any symptomatic affection. Feeble and ex- 
citable constitutions are most liable to disorder. Where 
there is feebleness, there must be strict attention to 
diet, to warmth, cleanliness, ventilation, gentle exercise, 
and in short to every regulation that will promote nutri- 
tion and prevent exhaustion. When the nurse has to 
deal with excitability, everything must be avoided that 
can promote excitement, whether of the stomach, the cir- 
culation, or the nerves. At such a time, the gentle 
cheerfulness and patience of the mother or nurse will be 
largely called upon. Previous habits have a great influ- 
ence at this time. If these have been regular from birth, 
the system is able to sustain the effects of teething with 
less pain and difficulty than otherwise. The local symp- 
toms, such as swelling, redness and irritation of the 



TEETHING. 231 

gums, may be considerable, but the general system will be 
less disposed to irregular action. 

When the mother has become thoroughly acquainted 
with the constitution of her child, she will be prepared 
to act in accordance with nature. A slight looseness of 
the bowels is advantageous, but too great laxity is to be 
properly corrected by the prompt use of Ayer's Second 
Summer Curative, which is the safe and reliable remedy 
in such cases. 

The warm bath assists materially in soothing pain and 
excitement, allaying fever, and regulating the circulation. 
A mother should not fail to examine her child's mouth, 
nor discontinue the practice until the second set of teeth 
are cut ; neither should she forget that even after three 
years of age, his system may be disordered by teething. 
Sudden fretfulness or waywardness of temper, cough, and 
even symptoms of croup have been traced to the cutting 
of a delayed double tooth. Lancing the gums is an op- 
eration of great utility in many cases. The local irrita- 
tion arises from the pressure of the teeth upon the mem- 
brane, and when this is divided, the irritation abates. 
Properly performed, the operation gives no pain, but on 
the contrary immediate relief. Delay is sometimes pro- 
ductive of serious consequences. Fever is often immedi- 
ately subdued by lancing the gums. 



Repose and Exercise. 

Repose is essential to the health and life of a newly-born 
babe. The functions of the breathing organs, though 
regular, are not prepared for the excitement caused 



232 AVER'S MOXITOR OF HEALTH. 

by violent motions, nor are any of the organs fitted for 
exercise. In the course of a few weeks, the senses begin 
to act, and this is the period of voluntary motion. In 
time muscular action becomes independent of mental im- 
pressions, for the activity of the body soon outstrips the 
progress of the mind. At the first, it may be said that 
an infant can create exercise for itself, in the acts of 
nursing and crying, and in slight motions of the head, 
hands, and feet. For some time it is not fit for any other 
exertion of its muscular system. It should not be moved 
violently about, for the bones are at first cartilaginous or 
gristly, soft, pliable, and elastic, and therefore totally un- 
fit for enduring any strain, force, or weight. 

When the upright posture is assumed, the weight of 
the upper part of the body is thrown upon the lower part 
of the spine. If that part of the system be sufficiently 
strong, no harm ensues; but when it is otherwise, it gives 
way, and the chest is thrown forward and downward. 
The consequence is a curvature of the spine, which too 
long neglect may confirm into settled deformity, and a 
crushing of the organs on which depend respiration, cir- 
culation, and digestion. 

Gentle motion may be increased to something more 
active, as the strength of the limbs, and the neck espe- 
cially, may indicate. The power of holding the head up, 
and moving it steadily from side to side, is a good index 
of the strength of the spine. 

Attention should be given to the effect produced upon 
the breathing, by exercise. An infant should never re- 
main long in one position, because the pressure that takes 



REPOSE AND EXERCISE, 233 

place, being confined to one part, free circulation is pre- 
vented, and numbness ensues. 

From six to fourteen months of infantile life is the 
period which most taxes the strength and activity of a 
nurse. The child has muscular power enough to sit up, 
and to bear, and to need a good deal of motion, yet is 
not sufficiently strong to depend upon itself. When al- 
lowed and assisted to take judicious exercise, the babe 
sleeps more soundly, and for a longer time at once ; it 
will be more easily diverted in its waking hours, while its 
growing intelligence and affection render it an object of 
deeper interest and pleasure. When a child can sit up 
firmly, tying it into a chair that will support the back, or 
into a chair swing, etc., with the means of amusement 
just within its reach, promotes exercise, and permits free, 
spontaneous exertion. Such resources for the advance- 
ment of physical good, ought never to be adopted as a 
means of punishment ; neither ought a child to be forced 
to submit to them, if evidently disagreeable or fatiguing. 
Exercise is both a cause and a consequence of strength. 

As the power of walking depends upon the strength of 
the bones and muscles, the period at which it may be ac- 
quired, is not always the same; much depends upon 
nursing. An infant that is continually on the lap or in 
the arms does not get the same amount of healthful ex- 
ercise which lying upon the floor and tossing about per- 
mits, and therefore is not so well prepared to use its 
limbs; it is not so likely to run alone, as one who has 
been reared with greater freedom. A child forced to walk 
too soon, is very liable, almost certain, to have bent legs 
or weak ankles ; or if it escapes these evils, it will prob- 



234 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HEALTH 

ably be less strong upon its legs, and less active, at two 
years of age than it would have been by more gradual 
and judicious means. Children sometimes run alone at 
nine months, but the average age is between twelve and 
sixteen months. Very fat, heavy children should be care- 
fully managed in respect to walking, while a delicate 
child requires equal care and caution, but for a different 
reason. None of the artificial means of teaching children 
to walk can be commended. Leading by one hand ought 
not to be resorted to, until there is enough strength to 
walk erect, otherwise the child is dragged along, swing- 
ing upon one arm, with the weight of the whole body 
sustained by one side only, with obvious consequences. 
Lifting a child by its arms is very dangerous, for it strains 
the ligaments and is liable to cause injury to the collar- 
bone ; besides which, it gives pain. A child ought to be 
lifted by placing the hands around the waist. A child of 
a year old will raise itself by its arms, but it never pro- 
longs or forces the effort to the production of pain ; its 
only danger from its gymnastic feats, is liability to a fall. 
Mothers ought, if possible, to superintend the out-door 
exercise of their children. The duty of doing so is too often 
assigned to servants, who, even though well disposed, are 
not qualified by education to understand the nature of 
that duty. Children will learn much from the example 
of a mother who is practically wise — and they will some- 
times learn more from servants than is desirable. Unless 
compelled to remain at home by illness, or the perform- 
ance of some duty which cannot be deputed to servants, 
mothers should frequently go out in company with their 
children, both for the sake of watching over their personal 



REPOSE AND EXERCISE. 



235 



safety, and calling their attention to objects calculated to 
amuse their fancy, and instruct their infant understand- 
ing. The health of the mother will thus be as much ben- 
efited as that of her children. A mother's tenderness 
and intelligence draw from these sources an increase of 
happiness. She may sow the first seeds of religion by 
fostering a love of nature, which shall be gradually led 
up to the Author of nature ; while she herself derives 
the inestimable advantage of being associated in her chil- 
drens' minds with all that is beautiful, entertaining, good 
and holy. 





ZI. 

CLIMATES OF AMERICA. 

Their Influence upon Health. 

HILE within the boundaries of the United States 
are included almost every variety of climate, 
from the tropical to the frigid, and from the 
driest to the most moist, the sanitary results 
observed in various localities oecome of great inter- 
est and value to the investigator. The question of 
health is so vital to the people, that although few of 
them, comparatively, may be able to choose their resi- 
dence, or to change it at will, yet no facts bearing upon 
the subject' can be given without interest and benefit. 

Change of climate, judiciously made, is in most cases 
beneficial to invalids. There are certain changes that are 
beneficial in all cases : A resident of a city may remove 
to the country, where the air is pure, and the surround- 
ings agreeable; the dweller in a cold, wet or low land 
may remove to high land; those who live in districts of 
humid atmosphere, may select some favored locality 
where the air is dry ; for the causes more in antagonism 
with human life than most others, are a lack of muscular 
exercise in the pure air, and humidity of the atmosphere. 
The general direction so often given to the consumptive, 
to go to the South in winter, and to the North in sum- 
mer, regardless of his physical condition, is worse than 

(836) 



CLIMATIC INFLUENCES. 237 

folly, and may be detrimental in the extreme, if the ad- 
vice be in all cases heeded. A climate admirably adapted 
to the condition and requirements of one person, may be 
highly injurious to another, even if suffering from the 
same ailment. Age, temperament, tastes and other facts 
relating to the invalid, as well as the nature and stage of 
the disease, are always to be carefully considered in the 
selection of a locality to be visited. 

In tropical regions, where the air is most humid, and 
the temperature very high, Consumption is frequent, but 
where the atmosphere is dry, there is comparatively little 
of this disease, whether it be warm or cold, as in Aus- 
tralia, Egypt or Siberia. The effects of humidity may 
be counteracted in a great measure by exercise out of 
doors. It is a remarkable fact that workmen exposed to 
humidity of the air, seldom become consumptive, while 
pursuing their avocations. 

A moderate, rather than extreme dryness, is the most 
favorable for the healthy performance of the bodily func- 
tions. A moderate range of temperature and atmos- 
pheric variation is necessary for the preservation of health. 
Many patients who derive great benefit from a temporary 
sojourn in a mild, sheltered location, do not bear a long 
residence in such an atmosphere without injury. Warm 
and dry regions are better suited to persons of the lym- 
phatic temperament, than to those of the nervous-san- 
guine temperament. When a change occurs in the con- 
stitution which diminishes the production of heat, the 
patient cannot endure the same degree of cold which 
earlier in the disease, would have been well borne. Per- 
sons of hemorrhagic tendency, suffering from affections 



238 A TEE'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

of the lungs, or heart, incur great peril in visiting high 
latitudes, or mountainous regions of great elevation. 

Invalids from any class of maladies will doubtless de- 
rive as much benefit from a sojourn in certain parts of 
the United States, as in any part of the world. One 
conspicuous fact, evidenced not only in our own country, 
but in all others, is that the population of cities are subject 
to a much greater mortality than those of the country. 
While 'the proportion of deaths in the rural districts is 
but one and a quarter in 100, the proportion in cities 
varies from two to over three in 100. The causes of the 
greater prevalence of disease and death in the condensed 
population of cities, are obvious. They may be summed 
up in impure air, artificial diet and stimulants, irrational 
hours, unnatural stimulus and excitement in the condi- 
tions of living. In the pointed phrase of Rosseau, 
" Cities are the graves of the human race." 

While within them wealth and power are concentrated, 
health and happiness are recklessly squandered. It is 
believed by eminent physiologists that the population of 
the great cities of the world would become extinct in a 
few generations, were they not constantly recruited by 
immigration from the rural districts, and from foreign- 
nations. This fresh infusion of healthier blood preserves 
the denizens of cities from that fatal deterioration 
which would otherwise overtake them. The vigor of our 
urban population would soon be lost, were it not for these 
accessions, and for occasional recurrence to purer foun- 
tains of health, on the part of the citizens themselves. 
Happy is that city which is so favored in climate and lo- 
cation as to add no stimulus to the causes which continu- 
ally tend to sap the life-blood of its people. 



CLIMATIC INFLUENCES. 239 

Considering the great fatality of Consumption and 
other pulmonary diseases, which carry off their great an- 
nual quota in this country, it is interesting to note which 
regions are most, and which are least affected by these 
complaints. The facts, as shown by the most carefully 
prepared statistics, are : that Consumption and its allied 
diseases are more than twice as prevalent in New Eng- 
land, as in the Western States generally; and that the 
moist climate of the sea-shore and the lakes is decidedly 
active in predisposing to pulmonary diseases, while as 
we diverge into the drier regions of the country, immu- 
nity from such maladies is found. The most salubrious 
portions of the country are unquestionably those which 
have the greatest elevation above the sea. Skillful phy- 
sicians now send patients afflicted with pulmonary ail. 
ments to the elevated interior and sheltered mountain 
regions, rather than to the sea-shore, even though the 
latter would secure them a much warmer atmosphere. 

That portions of country where the earth is damp, 
and the soil saturated with moisture from lakes and 
springs, and where fogs form and linger, are those most 
prolific in the production of the dread malady is certain. 
The favorable influence of high altitudes upon this class 
of invalids has been noted in thousands of cases. It was 
formerly the custom of consumptives to resort to tropical 
regions to spend the winter, and very many persons have 
died in lands to which they had gone in the hope of 
amelioration or recovery. 

In the dry and pure air, and great elevation of Col* 
orado, as well as on the Laramie plains of Wyoming, the 
conditions are united which appear to offer the greatest 



240 A TEE'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 






hope of relief from those insidious maladies which carry 
off such an extensive quota of our population. The high 
table regions of New Mexico, elevated some 6,000 feet 
above the sea, combine those conditions of dryness of air 
and mildness of climate, with equable winds, which are 
most conducive to perfect health. 

Those regions which combine the lowest elevations, and 
the greatest area of ponds, lakes, rivers, and wet lands, 
to their whole area, have the largest number of deaths 
from various diseases. The State of Maine, abounding 
as it does, in standing water and wet lands, and having a 
greater average of rainfall, as well as snowfall, than any 
other State in the Union, is prolific in pulmonary com- 
plaints. 

The mortality from Consumption in each of the New 
England States is especially great in proportion to 
the whole number of deaths. In Massachusetts one per- 
son in every 250 dies of Consumption. 

In and around North America, we have the frigid, 
temperate and torrid climates, — cold winds from the 
North Atlantic, and warm breezes from the Pacific, and 
all the modifying effects of mountains, plains and table- 
lands. Within the boundaries of our own country, we 
have a little world of our own. As we descend the coast 
from Maine, Consumption gradually lessens, until we 
reach Pennsylvania, and in that State one person in every 
580 dies from this cause. Next we find Michigan, situ- 
ated between two lakes; in that State, the rate is one in 
630. Then we find Ohio and Kentucky, materially af- 
fected by the lakes on the North, and the Alleghanies on 
the East, — the Consumption death-rate of Ohio being one 



CLIMATIC INFLUENCES. 241 

in 670, and of Kentucky one in 660 of the population. 

From Ohio, we strike across the Continent, and find 
California on the same parallel of latitude, suffering next, 
its death-rate from the same cause, being one in 720. 
Then we come to the western and upper tier of the South- 
ern States ; among these we find Louisiana with its death- 
rate from the same cause, one in 840. "We account for 
the frequency of the disease in this State by two causes : 
New Orleans contains a large population of a mixed race, 
densely crowded ; the city is below the level of the river, 
and it is subjected to violent " northers " during certain 
seasons of the year. On the other hand, we find that in 
Minnesota the disease is less frequent, the death-rate 
from that cause being one in 1139 ; while in North Car- 
olina it is one in 1300; Mississippi, one in 1420; Texas, 
one in 1430; Florida, one in 1440; Alabama, one in 
1618; South Carolina, one in 1720; and Georgia, one in 
2150. 

We can account for the prevalence of the disease in 
all the " Consumptive States '' by applying to each the 
rule of cold and moisture. North of 35°, cold winds and 
rains prevail, with more or less frequency, during three 
seasons of the year. Besides, the different mountain 
ranges prevent the perfect evaporation of moisture. 
Passing from the coast to the interior, we find that Con- 
sumption prevails, but not to the same extent that it does 
on the sea-board. The same influences prevail in all the 
Northern and Middle States, but distance from the coast 
materially modifies them. Moisture exists no less in 
North Carolina, South Carolina, Florida, Alabama, Louis- 
iana, Mississippi, Texas, and California, than it does 

16 



242 A YER'S MO X IT OR OF HEALTH. 






further north, but it is much warmer, causing more dis- 
ease, but of a different type — such as disorders of the 
liver — Consumption being very rare. 

The difference between a high and a low temperature, 
providing the rainfall and altitude are the same, is slight, 
so far as the effect upon the lungs is concerned. Upon 
the table-lands of Mexico, there is little or no Consump- 
tion; the temperature is high, and there is but little 
moisture. In Greenland, Iceland and Russia, the disease 
is hardly known; and yet the temperature is low. 



Colorado. 

The climate of Colorado is notable for mildness. The 
average temperature of the region about Colorado 
Springs is about 60°. The thermometer rarely indicates 
below zero, and seldom exceeds 80° at the warmest. 
Snow seldom remains on the ground more than twenty- 
four hours. The winters are very mild; and the absence 
of clouds the year round is remarkable. The genial sun- 
light is seldom hidden. Being free from humidity, won- 
derfully clear and exhilarating, malarious or other 
poisonous exhalations never burden the atmosphere. 
Although the air is cool, it is perfectly dry, and persons 
may sleep with windows and doors open, without risk of 
taking cold. There are hardly a score of days in any 
year, in which invalids may not sit out of doors, ride or 
walk, forenoon or afternoon, with comfort. For most 
forms of disease, the increased activity imposed on the 
breathing organs, in high altitudes, is a constant benefit. 
The invalid's respirations increased from 16 to 20 per 



CLIMATIC INFLUENCES. 243 

minute, he finds a new experience ; his blood circulates 
more rapidly, and is more completely aerated. In spring, 
summer and autumn, the nights are invariably cool; 
there are not half a dozen nights in a season when 
blankets are uncomfortable. 

Persons shut out from the light of day — all whose 
occupations confine them to ill-lighted rooms, are more 
predisposed to Consumption than people who enjoy more 
favorable conditions ; and all such persons will be bene- 
fited by the climate of Colorado. There are more sunny 
days in Colorado and the less elevated parts in the heart 
of the Continent, than in the vapor-laden sea-coast of 
any part of the world. 

The bed of Fountain Eiver, at Colorado Springs, is over 
a mile higher than Philadelphia. Here one must breathe 
more fully and more rapidly than on ordinary levels. 
The climate is as equable as that of any portion of 
the Western hemisphere. It is similar to that of Mexico, 
which is a continuation of the same plateau. The lati- 
tude of Colorado Springs is 38° 50 / — the same as Wash- 
ington city. There are two facts, arising from the altitude 
of the country, which qualify the t temperature, but the 
influence of which is scarcely shown by the thermometer. 
In the first place, there is a more marked difference be- 
tween the period from sunrise to sunset, and the period 
from sunset to sunrise, than on ordinary levels. The 
change of temperature at sundown is immediately per- 
ceptible. When the sun shines, there is a more marked 
difference between sunshine and shade than there is in 
other regions. The sunshine pierces through the air in 
the fullness of power, but has comparatively little effect 



244 AYE IV S MONITOR OF HE ALT E. 

on the atmosphere, dry air being a poor conductor; 
therefore all thermometrical observations taken in the 
shade will show a lower temperature than is felt, es- 
pecially in winter, for the sun shines almost continually. 
In a series of years, the average number of cloudy days 
was forty-three in a year. 

Colorado is an immense territory, and is climatically 
divided into three sections : Northern Colorado, the chief 
town of which is Denver, Southern Colorado, in which is 
Colorado Springs, and the Mountain region, in the 
locality of Leadville, Georgetown, etc. In the mountains, 
a person may attain to any degree of cold, even up to per- 
petual snow. Northern Colorado, as to temperature in 
degrees, is similar to Eastern Pennsj'lvania. Denver is 
in the latitude of Philadelphia. Southern Colorado is 
separated from Northern Colorado by the Great Divide, 
— a high mountain range, which starts from the main range 
some thirty miles south of Denver, at a right angle, and 
runs due east. Southern Colorado therefore lies with a 
southern exposure, under this great wall, and has the 
general climate of Norfolk, Va., save that it is dry. 

The average annual rainfall at Denver is fourteen 
inches ; the snowfall twenty -two inches. The death-rate 
of Denver is but ten to 1,000 inhabitants — a lesser rate 
than any other city in the Union. New York has thirty- 
two, and New Orleans has fifty-four to 1,000 population. 

The classes of invalids who may reasonably hope to 
derive benefit from the climate of Colorado, are wide and 
varied, but especially persons suffering from affections of 
throat and lungs, and from Asthma, but not from organic 
diseases of the heart; such cases almost invariably 



CLIMATIC INFLUENCES. 245 

speedily terminate fatally. Many invalids who visit 
Colorado, rashly throw away their vital advantages by 
pushing forward in too great haste to the highest altitude. 
Any person with a fair constitution, who settles in any 
part of Colorado has a better chance of enjoying a health- 
ful life, and of attaining advanced age, than in any other 
part of the world. 



Minnesota, 

Minnesota is a favorite resort of Pulmonary invalids. 
The State is centrally located, midway between the At- 
lantic and Pacific, midway between the North and South 
Poles, midway between Hudson's Bay and the Gulf of 
Mexico, and midway between the coast ranges of the 
Atlantic and Pacific, and on the height of land of the 
continent. From Minnesota, descend three water-sheds : 
from the North, the Red River system; from the South, 
the Mississippi and Missouri rivers ; and from the East, 
the St. Lawrence system. The soil is porous, and 
moisture is quickly absorbed. The land is rolling, pre- 
senting a natural drainage. 

The State is so far from the Atlantic, that cold winds 
scarcely reach it, while the warm winds from the Pacific, 
deprived of their moisture by the Rocky Mountains, give 
it an early spring, with but little moisture. The average 
annual snowfall is twenty-five and a half inches. There 
is no spot especially favored, but for hundreds of miles 
west of the Misissippi River, the invalid will find immunity 
from Consumption. The death-rate is nearly the same as 
that of Colorado. 



246 AYE IPS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

In the census of 1860, the United States was divided 
into eight districts ; that embracing Minnesota, Iowa and 
Wisconsin presented a less rate of mortality than any- 
other. There were but eighteen deaths by Consumption, 
to 1,000 population, while in the Gulf States, the death- 
rate was from sixty-two to sixty-five to 1,000 — a greater 
mortality than any other district. During the winter in 
Minnesota, the thermometer often indicates from 18° to 
20° below zero, but no such intensity of cold is felt, so 
dry and pure is the atmosphere. Persons who would 
not venture out, in their native States, with the mercury 
at zero, go abroad here with impunity when it is 15° or 
20° below. 

Wherever people may go for climatic advantages, 
they should take ample exercise in the free air ; nor 
should they walk or ride from a sense of duty, with a 
barometer in one hand, a thermometer in the other, a 
medical treatise under one arm, and a bundle of quack 
advertisements under the other, and with pockets filled 
with powders and pills which the doctor orders to be taken 
every fifteen minutes, from early dawn till midnight, but 
leave these, if possible, where wild, noxious beasts and 
birds may gather them up. 

On plateaus of 7,500 to 15,000 feet above the sea, the 
air is so rarified that a much greater quantity must be in- 
haled at each inspiration, than on the sea-coast ; as a 
result, the lungs acquire greater volume and dilatation than 
in other regions, and there is often remarkable develop- 
ment of the chest. In very high altitudes, there is ( x- 
perienced a difficulty of making muscular exertion ; the 
strongest man can scarcely take a few steps without rest- 



CLIMATIC INFLUENCES. 2*7 

ing ; the operations of the brain are impeded, and there 
is inclination to sleep. The reason is, that in the vol- 
ume of air received at each inspiration, there is a less 
quantity of oxygen in proportion as the altitude gained is 
higher. Fires will scarcely burn, on great elevations, 
the air being too thin and rare to support them; and so 
those combustions which should go on in the body are 
greatly reduced in intensity, and a sense of penetrating 
cold is felt. Such journeys illustrate how completely the 
action of the brain and the muscular system are depend- 
ent upon air. Of all cooling agencies, evaporation is the 
most potent. The daily loss of water by the lungs and 
skin together, is 3 J^ pounds, of which the skin throws off 
two thirds. The skin loses more or less water as the air 
is drier, or more damp. 

While the intense cold of far northern winters — ag- 
gravated in the northeast by dampness — tends to ex- 
haust the heat-producing capacity of the Consumptive, 
hot, humid summers of the lowlands of the south tend to 
hasten death by their debilitating influence, and by tL j 
inflammations and fevers they cause. While mortality 
from Consumption increases from South to North, that 
from inflammations and fevers increases from North to 
South, with its maximum in Louisiana, especially in the 
counties on each side of the Mississippi. So prevalent 
and fatal are Pleurisy and Pneumonia in Louisiana, that 
the mortality from these causes very considerably exceeds 
that from Consumption in Wisconsin ; while the mortal- 
ity from these diseases in Wisconsin is less than that 
from Consumption in Louisiana. In the river counties 
also is to be found the highest death-rate from all causes, 



248 A TEE'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

of the whole country, — due to the combined influence of 
high temperature, great humidity, and malaria-laden at- 
mosphere. Next in total mortality, are the shores of the 
Gulf, and the coast of the Southern States on the Atlantic. 



Florida. 

We now glance at the favored climes of the "Sunny 
South," our first observation being Florida, — the most 
southern of our States, lying between 24>£ , and 31° 
north latitude, and having an area of 59,000 square 
miles. Good water — a great desideratum — is found all 
over the State. The soil is generally a light sandy 
loam, with a substratum of clay. The season is from 
four to six weeks earlier than in any other part of the 
Atlantic coast. Its climate generally is genial and 
healthful. 

Though the State is in the latitude of Northern 
Mexico, the Desert of Sahara, Central Arabia, Northern 
Hindostan, Northern Burmah, and Southern China, the 
climate of Florida, tempered by the Atlantic breezes 
on one side, and those of the Gulf on the other, 
is far more temperate and equable than that of any of 
those countries. The Spanish records at St. Augustine 
show that for one hundred years the mean temperature 
of the winter months averaged a little over 60°, and of 
the summer, 86°. The extremes of the year, taking the 
Peninsular together, are about 35° as the coldest, and 
95° as the warmest; neither extreme is reached more 
than two or three times in a year. The summer may be 
said to last seven or eight months, and during the whole 
period, there are very few uncomfortably hot days. The 



CLIMATIC INFLUENCES. 249 

sea-breeze tempers the air, and the nights are always 
cool. 

The rainy season extends over three or four months, 
but there are only more frequent showers, and some- 
times heavy, drenching rains, of a few hours' duration. 
Occasionally there are long drouths in some sections, 
and excessive rain in others. 

St. Augustine — the Oldebt city in the United States — 
Jacksonville, and places on the St. John's River, are re- 
sorts for invalids. Volusia county is another favorite 
resort. 

The climate is remarkably healthful. It is perpetual 
summer from November to April, and from April to 
November it is one glorious blaze of almost tropical 
sunshine. The heat is tempered by a continual fresh 
ocean breeze by day, and by the land breeze at night, 
rendering it delightfully cool, but never chilly; and 
during the day, the mercury seldom rises higher than 
87°. A hot, or even a warm wind is here unknown ; 
on the contrary, it is always fresh, cool, and invigorat- 
ing. The breeze rises every day between 8 and 10 A. M., 
and while watching for its coming, in the deep, silent 
calm of a hot morning, you will catch the first distant 
rustle of its wings as it rises from the silvery tips of old 
ocean's billows, and as you watch in the southeast, for 
the signs, you will see the giant pines in the distance 
beginning to bend to its influence ; and presently, down 
it sweeps upon you, bathing your whole frame in an ec- 
static sense of delight, thrilling through every fibre of 
the body, breathing fresh, new life and vigor, and stir- 
ring the pulses into life and joy ; and on it passes, scat- 



250 AYEWS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

tering delight and balm to every creature. The very 
birds feel it, and utter a gushing carrol of song as it 
passes. Here is no pulmonary disease. 



Georgia and the Carolinas. 

The Piedmont Country, at the base of the Blue Ridge, 
Northeastern Georgia, and Northwestern South Caro- 
lina is commended to invalids, for autumn, winter, and 
spring residence. This favored climate may be found 
throughout the elevated valleys and table-lands of the 
mountains of Northern Georgia, Northwest South Caro- 
lina, and the extreme western portion of North Car- 
olina. 

The "isothermal belt," or belt of equal heat, in the 
immediate vicinity of Tryon Mountain, in North Caro- 
lina, is an interesting region. It is a lovely valley, about 
2,200 feet above ocean level, where frost has never been 
felt, where roses bloom, and fruit hangs on the trees un- 
harmed, often until the middle of January; where a few 
snow-flakes occasionally fall, but melt by the time they 
reach the ground, while the mountains are covered with 
snow, and heavy frosts are of frequent occurrence out- 
side of this line. The temperature apparently falls in 
this valley in the heat of summer, and rises in the win- 
ter, but in reality the temperature is unchanged. The 
belt is never deficient in moisture, though dew is there 
unknown. And this favorable climate pervades the 
western section of the Carolinas, and much of Northern 
Georgia. The grandeur of mountain and valley scenery 
is not surpassed east of the Mississippi. 






CLIMATIC INFLUENCES. 251 

The climate has not the singular equableness of parts 
of California, but it is believed by many physicians to be 
more favorable to health. Neither in Europe, nor any- 
where along the shores of the Mediterranean, is there a 
climate which during the year round, is so agreeable and 
healthful as this region. The mean temperature for 
winter is that of Northwestern Texas, and the mean for 
summer that of New York city, or of Sandusky, at the 
west end of Lake Erie. As we approach the equator, 
the range of the thermometer diminishes, so that in this 
region, we should have no day in summer so hot or so 
cold as in New York or Sandusky. The winter is as 
mild as is conducive to health. 

The Highlands of Western North Carolina is a piatea 
more than 4,000 feet above the level of the sea. The 
surface is mostly covered by a forest, which presents 
the appearance of a grand old English park, through 
the aisles of which — often carpeted by a luxuriant 
growth of verdure, a person can ride almost as easily as 
in the open country. The only region east of the 
Rocky Mountains that can rival the Highlands, is the 
Cumberland table-land in Tennessee, but that has an al- 
titude of only 2,000 feet, and its summer mean is 5° 
above that of the Carolina plateau. Colorado Springs, 
the pleasantest place of residence in Colorado, perhaps, 
has a summer 4° warmer, and a winter 4° colder than 
the Highlands; and though Colorado has thus far 
proved more beneficial to Consumptives than any other 
region in this country, the climate of this portion of Car- 
olina is regarded by many physicians, quie as favorable; 
for while it partakes of the inequableness of the coun- 



252 AYER'S MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

try east of the Pacific Coast, its fluctuations are less 
frequent, less sudden and extreme, than those of Colo- 
rado. It is also free from the almost incessant high 
winds, with clouds of dust and sand, that constitute so 
disagreeable a feature of the climate at the base of the 
Rocky Mountains. 

An equally, but rot more pleasant summ^ may be 
found in California, along a narrow belt between the 
Coast range and tho ocean, — just far enough distant 
from the latter to escape its chilling and fog-laden air. 
But California has, for its latitude, a large mortality 
from Consumption, and diseases of the nervous system 
prevail to a remarkable extent, and its total mortality is 
greater than that of several other States. On the other 
hand, the State is large, and some regions have an ex- 
ceedingly healthful climate. 



Southern California. 

The belt of country extending from Santa Barbara to 
San Diego offers unusual attractions as a health resort, 
at all seasons, and especially in winter, by reason of its 
equable, genial climate, dry air, exuberant vegetable and 
fruit products, and its charming scenery. 

South of the bold promontory of the Sierra Nevada, 
which abuts on the ocean, the California coast is semi- 
tropical, and exempt from the raw winds and fogs 
which at times trouble San Francisco; and frost and 
snow are almost unknown. The time of passage from 
New York to Los Angelos is about a week. This is the 
center of the great vineyards and orange plantations of 



CLIMATIC INFLUENCES. 253 

California. Many of the tropical fruits can here be 
found in perfection, all the year round. Southern Cali- 
fornia is certainly a delightful resort for all, and espe- 
cially beneficial to those classes who have need to escape 
the inclemencies of northern winters. 



Medicinal Springs. 

The indiscriminate use of waters of medicinal springs, 
which are found in great numbers, and great variety, 
throughout the United States, is as liable to prove det- 
rimental as beneficial. While it is true that such waters 
hold in solution chemical agents that are conducive to 
recovery in some ailments, these agents may be produc- 
tive of great injury in others. It follows, therefore, that 
in the selection of medicinal springs, patients should first 
ascertain the facts concerning their physical condition, 
and the properties of the waters proposed as remedial; 
and the questions so vital to them, cannot be properly 
settled without a medical examination, and advice by 
a competent physician. And as no special benefit would 
be liable to accrue to invalids by presenting in these pa- 
ges reports in relation to such springs, we shall only add 
that a great variety of medicinal waters may be found in 
many of the States of the Union, and especially in 
New York, Virginia, Michigan, Wisconsin, Florida, Colo- 
rado and Arkansas. 



Sea Bathing. 

However agreeable a residence at the sea-side, ki mid- 
summer, and however salutary sea bathing may be, the 



254 AYE IPS MONITOR OF HEALTH. 

atmospheric conditions on the sea-board, fogs and chilly 
east winds, especially, are decidedly unfavorable and often 
hazardous to persons suffering from any affection of the 
breathing organs, or from certain other ailments. The 
saline quality of sea water is stimulant and tonic to the 
skin, and a very effectual preventive against colds, but 
since an equal degree of benefit may be derived, any- 
where, from sponge bathing with salt water, this method 
may be practiced in favorable climates, with still 
greater benefit than on the sea-coast, and without incur- 
ring any hazard; indeed there are few conditions in life 
in which such bathing is not beneficial. As a prevent- 
ive of night-sweats, and of colds, or as a remedy for 
muscular soreness, etc., a warm or cold solution of salt, 
used as a local or general bath, as the case may be, is a 
most valuable auxiliary of other remedial means. 



To Invalids Who Seek Health by 
Change of Climate. 

Wherever people go for the benefit of climate, and how- 
ever healthful the locality visited, no great benefit can be 
reasonably hoped for, without ample exercise in the open 
air. If the mind be agreeably diverted with sight-seeing ? 
the invalid feels a stronger incentive for exercise ; and 
his pursuit of discovery, his search and acquisition, lead 
him to make such salutary efforts, as no argument, per- 
suasion, nor conviction of duty would do. The search 
for health should include minor objects also for botan- 
ical and geological specimens, and others — birds, flowers, 
fossils, shells, game, etc., which occupation will serve to 



CLIMATIC INFLUENCES. 255 

divert the mind from contemplation of his malady, and 
promote health. From the moment of leaving home, till 
his return, the invalid should seek to make his health 
excursion successful ; forget his afflictions so far as pos- 
sible, and become a practical, active, observing tourist, 
confidently hoping to win the favor of the Goddess of 
Health, by offerings gleaned and garnered by his own 
efforts. 

Cheerfulness, "faith and works," are very potent 
qualities in the attainment of the grand object sought by 
change of climate and scene. 



It is coming in the early future to be recognized, as it 
was in the days of ancient Greece and Rome, that our 
bodies are sacred, to be cared for and protected, as well 
as our souls. For, as has been forcibly said by an able 
writer, there is a corporeal hell, with descent as easy, and 
ascent as difficult, as in the case of the theological 
Avernus. The day of physical judgment is ever with 
us; we ever stand on the right hand, or on the left, 
of the eternal throne of Hygiea. " Have you fitly fed 
your hungriness, judiciously clothed and housed your 
nakedness, strengthened your system by exercise in the 
pure air, devoted due time to slumber, and practiced re- 
quisite ablutions, avoided quack doctors and evil habits ?" 
she asks. If you have not in all of these, your gold and 
your silver, your good repute, your good conscience even, 
will avail you nothing — the penalty must fall upon you, 
for morality has no influence over natural laws, nor is 
ignorance a bar or shield against their operation. 



SPECIAL NOTICE. 

— 2EH&-H — 

Opinions in relation to the Condition, Curability, and 
Requirements of individual cases, will be given upon 
request, by the Author of this work, and Question 
lists for examination of such cases will be supplied. 
Upon the correctness of examinations, and candor of 
opinions, full reliance may be placed. The measure 
of benefit that may be reasonably expected from 
Medication, Hygiene, Climatic influence, etc. will be 
frankly stated. Fee $2. Every subsequent letter 
of advice $1. Ail communications strictly confiden- 
tial. Address, 

J. WIN SLOW AYER, M. D. 

Medical Director Health Institute, 
South Bend, Ind. 



SP^Olill, ANNOUNCEMENTS, 



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Unequalled in efficacy by any medicinal preparation ever 
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ness, loss of Voice, Cough from irritation of the throat, 
and as a remedy in Diphtheria, it has no equal. It 
should be in every household in the land. Once tried, no 
person will fail to obtain a supply as a safeguard for the 
future. Not affected by climate nor age. A single two- 
drachm vial of the powder is amply sufficient to cure al- 
most any case. Price, $1.00. 

AYER'S SECOtf I> SUMMER CURATIVE. 

This preparation is presented as a never-failing 
remedy for Infantile Diarrhcea, and defective nutrition. 
It will cure Cholera Infantum in evert instance, 
when used early in the disease, and at any stage is cura- 
tive, and the very best remedy known to medical 
art. Perfectly safe, tasteless and never rejected. Its 
promptness and efficacy seem magical. It contains no 
opiate, and nothing deleterious to the most sensitive 
and delicate constitution. It instantly arrests vomiting, 
and controls the action of the bowels perfectly. 

In larger doses, it is equally efficacious in all diar- 
rhoeal complaints of whatever duration, of older children 
and adults. 

As a remedy for Dtspepsia, chronic inflammation 
or ulceration of the stomach or bowels, it is prompt and 
reliable. 7 Price, $ 1.00. 



SYSjffg Sg¥^M^ d\J^% 



In thousands of cases of Asthma, occurring in a most 
extensive practice drawn from all parts of the country, 
for more than twenty-five years, Dr. Ayer has used this 
remedy with entire success, and regards it, as do his pa- 
tients and many eminent practitioners, as 

THE MOST RELIABLE, PROMPT AND 
EFFECTIVE REMEDY. 

ever employed by the profession. It always terminates 
even the most severe paroxysm, in a few minutes, af- 
fording perfect relief, quieting nervous irritability, and 
promoting profuse expectoration. Not only does it pro- 
duce these results, but 

IT REALLY CURES ASTHMA 

in the greater number of cases, when there is no or- 
ganic disease of the heart, by persistence in its use for a 
reasonable period. 

It contains no opiate. It does not cause nausea, nor 
debility, or other bad effects, nor is it in the generality 
of cases disagreeable to the taste. It can be used any- 
where, under any conditions of the system, and is not 
impaired by change of temperature, being equally effect- 
ive at any season. An Asthmatic sufferer, who has once 
used the remedy, would not willingly fail to possess it. 

Price, $1.00. 



JUST THE THING FOR OUR CLIMATE. 



WHAT INVALIDS NEED. 



MORTON'S MEDICATED CHEST PROTECTOR 

is a most useful appliance for the benefit of inva- 
lids especially, but can be made of service for all. 
It really meets all the conditions its name implies. 

IT PREYENTS TMING COLD, 

It is a perfect protection against any pains or 
soreness of the chest, rheumatism and neuralgia. It 
should be worn by all consumptives and persons who 
have weak or imperfectly developed lungs ; all who are 
sensitive to colds; those who have catarrh, asthma, 
bronchitis, oppression of the chest, hoarseness, hemor- 
rhage, cough, and all persons of scrofulous or tuberculous 
predisposition. Its curative properties effect speedy results 

ON THE PRINCIPLE OF ABSORPTION, 

and often cures without the necessity of drugs. It is 
favored by all who have worn it. It is made of silk and flan, 
nel, incasing the curative compound, and worn under 
the clothing, and is in every respect agreeable. Sent 
free to all parts of the world upon receipt of two dollars. 



AYEH'S KIHNEY EHHE 



Perfectly Reliable, Prompt and Curative 

in all ailments of the Kidneys and Urinary System — espe- 
cially Inflammation, Neuralgia, Gravel, Calculi, Diabetes, 
Bright's disease, ailments of the Bladder, etc. No remedy 
has ever been compounded that even approximates its ex- 
cellence. It is a discovery of the greatest possible value 
and importance and will be regarded by all who use it, as 
of priceless worth in a most prevalent, dangerous, dis- 
tressing, and generally uncontrollable class of cases. 

Price, $1.00. 

The above remedies fully meet conditions from which 
sufferers have in vain sought relief, in the various pro- 
prietary compounds of the drug stores, and o ten finally 
abandoned hope of recovery. Every bottle of our 
medicine is prepared in our own laboratory, under our 
own personal supervision. 

AYER'S SPRAY INSTRUMENT. 

This is a small, curious, and most convenient pocket 
instrument, invented by Dr. Chas. W. Ayer, vastly su- 
perior to any other for similar purposes, ever devised, 
and meets conditions for which no other is at all suita- 
ble. In treatment of throat, nose, eye, ear or uterus, it 
is just what is needed by patients and by physicians. 
It is practically impossible to injure the instrument by 
use, or by the employment of any suitable remedies for 
the treatment of such complaints. Price, $1.25. 

Our remedies are for sale by all the leading Druggists. 
Accept no substitute. If your Druggist's supply is ex- 
hausted, you can obtain the article direct from this es- 
tablishment. 

DR. I. WINSIOW AYER, & Co. 
Health Institute, South Bend, Ind. 



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